Under A Roof xx Just Between Us
by Aihara-Yuki
Summary: On hiatus, due to personal life. She was rich, but not anymore. She had no other choice but to stay in her father's friend's house, and met this complicated boy. Things went up and down, and... what's actually their true relationship?
1. Unbelievable News

This is my first fanfic. Please don't flame me if you don't like it, okay?

Gakuen Alice's not mine, it's Tachibana Higuchi's.

Please read and review, thanks!

"N-no way! I'm so going to get scolded by Jinno-sensei!!!" A girl rushed towards her table to eat a toast and a glass of milk prepared by an elderly man with an apron in the kitchen. "Ne, daddy? I'll be quite late for today's part-time job. And, don't be late for work!!"

The blonde man turned his body to face Mikan Sakura, his only daughter. "Well, I understand. Go on, Mikan." She gave a quick kiss on his cheek and ran outside towards Nagoya High. "Hm… she's the same, right Yuka?" He gazed at a photograph. "Same just like you… But, I really have to explain those things…"

Mikan Sakura, sixteen years old, who is a naïve girl, loving, friendly and thinks positive at any situation, attended the Nagoya High class 2-B. She tied her hair in a pony-tail, thinking that a pig-tail might be just too childish at her age. Mikan has a good body figure at her age. She ran upstairs with all her might and forced the sliding door to open. "I'm LATE!!!" She found her Additional Mathematics teacher, Jinno-sensei standing furiously with his marker on his right hand while facing the white board. "G-gomen nasai!!"

He gave a sigh and boomed out, "How many times do I have to say this, Mikan Sakura!? This will be your last chance, or else, you'll be cleaning the whole class for a week." He pointed to an empty seat. "Go back to your seat!" She meekly bowed and resumed back to her seat. She was humiliated in front of her class again. That's the 3rd time this week.

**Chapter 1: Unbelievable News.**

Mikan was doing her Home-Economics study with Yamada Serina-sensei until someone poked a pencil on her back. She turned back and saw Kitsuneme smiling at her, giving her a thumb up. "Mikan, remember the deal after your part-time, all right?" He whispered silently.

She nodded and winked as a sign of a yes. Soon after the school bell rang, she packed her things in the bag and walked along with Kitsuneme and Kokoro Yome. "Hey, I heard the manager's going to give us the salary today…"

Kokoro wondered for a while and said, "Really? That'll be kind of cool, right?" Kitsuneme nodded. "Ah, I'll be having a date with Nonoko after this…"

"Ahh??" Both of them whined simultaneously. "You're not going to work and the new mall with us?"

Kokoro gave a 'no' look at his face. "Sorry, Nono-chan just requested me this morning. I can't reject her offer, can I? Besides, I've talked to the manager…"

"Yeah, yeah…" Mikan patted his back. "I understand. Go on. Kitsuneme and I could manage on our own." Kokoro gave a sorry bow and left them. "Didn't expect him to be with Nonoko, right?"

Kitsuneme sniggered and nodded. Both of them arrived to the music store and changed their uniforms to get on with their daily work-- arranging the CDs according to the title. "I just hate this job…" He said while placing the CD from the shelves and replaced with another one. "These customers don't know how to replace it well, do they?"

"Shh! Kitsu, you'll be in a deep trouble if the manager heard us…!" Mikan said who was doing the same thing beside him. "Anyway, this is way better than to service people in the cake shop like what Makino did…"

Kitsuneme sweat dropped. "Yeah, you're so right…" As they were busy shuffling the CDs here and there, Mikan's dad namely Narumi Sakura arrived to the store with a worried expression on his face. "Eh… d-dad?!"

Narumi was startled for a while and then patted on Mikan's shoulder. "I see that you're having a nice time here…" He waved back to Kitsuneme, who just gave a bow. "Anyway, Mikan? I have things to discuss…"

"D-dad? What about the office? They'll be missing the main role of the company, dad. You're the Chair Executive Officer…" Mikan reminded him. He gave a dry smile.

"Well, it concerns that issue too." Narumi sat down on a sofa. "I talked to your manager. He agreed to let you off."

"L-let me off? For what? I liked working even though we could afford to--"

"No, it's not that, honey…"

Mikan loved to work. Even though her dad forced her not to, she insisted on working. She was curious on how working feels like. "What's wrong? Dad, your face's pale…"

"We're bankrupt."

Mikan's face fell. His dad's company had just… bankrupted? Dad had always been diligent to his work, how could he… fail? "W-what? D-dad, are you serious?" Narumi nodded. "W-what has these things got to do with quitting my job here? I believe that I have to work harder than now, right?"

"I'm coming to that, Mikan…" Narumi said slowly. "The house and my properties might get auctioned next week, so we have to move somewhere else. It happened when one of my men embezzled the money of my company… Well, unlucky me. I forgot to read the paper when I was asked to sign." Mikan comforted her dad, who was looking awfully depressed.

"Dad, I'm sorry…" She embraced him tightly. "But, all the hard work you did to make this happen… was wasted! Damn that guy, I curse him wherever he is right now!!"

"And… well, I've just saved an account under your name, so it won't get affected. It's a little sum, but it's enough for us to move to Tokyo."

"T-Tokyo?!" Mikan screeched. "W-what for? It's so far from Nagoya!" She apologized to her dad from accidentally screeching at his ears. "T-that means, I have to say goodbye to my friends?"

Narumi nodded. "I'm sorry, Mikan. I have to. My best friend told me to stay at Tokyo for a while. Until I could get a decent job and enough money, we could return back here if you want to."

"Oh yes! Return back to Nagoya, all right?" Mikan cheered. "Don't worry, dad. I'll always stay by your side." She kissed his cheek and hugged him tighter. Narumi felt happy that he had a daughter who could share his pain and joy.

X

For the whole week, Mikan and Narumi was too occupied with bringing only required things to Tokyo, like clothing, toothbrush, mirror, etc. All the furniture from the house was completely auctioned.

Mikan, however, gave the quitting school letter to Jinno-sensei, her homeroom teacher. He was shocked, and his eyes showed sympathy for Mikan's awful fate. He accepted the letter and wished her to live a life in Tokyo. When she returned to her class, they were pretty sad about her leaving. The class won't be that cheerful anymore, if she goes back to Tokyo.

"Man, why suddenly those things occurred?" Anna cried on her shoulder. "We'll miss you!!"

"Yeah, I will definitely miss you guys too!" Mikan received a book which consists of all the contacts of the students in this class. "What's this…?"

Kitsuneme chuckled. "We thought you might know when you read it, but, never mind. It's a contact book. Call us whenever you feel free or sad. We're here for you, Mikan."

Mikan's eyes were lining in tears. She is definitely going to miss everybody in her class. Her friends gave a group hug and wished that her life in Tokyo might be a lot better. "Well, my dad promised me one thing. To return to Nagoya after we stabilised our income. I'll return here as soon as possible!"

Nonoko smiled. "Yeah, we'll wait for your arrival. Hope you remember us, okay? Don't be so vain after coming back from Tokyo. I heard those people are snobbish! Especially towards a Kansai person."

Mikan nodded. "All right. I'll have to go now, guys. My dad's waiting outside. Everybody wished her luck and then, she ran outside and entered a taxi. Her dad's inside. "Dad, thanks for waiting."

"No problem. It's your farewell moments; I'm not spoiling it…" He comforted Mikan while wrapping his right arm on her shoulder. "Don't cry, we'll come back…"

She cried uncontrollably on his chest. The memories of her high school were too precious to remember. "Yeah, I will return back..."

X

Standing right in front of Hyuuga's mansion at Shibuya, Tokyo, made Mikan felt nervous. It looked like a mansion from the Renaissance period. The gate must have been 12 feet tall and there was a guard house outside the mansion! To think that this mansion might be 17 times bigger than any ordinary bungalow like Mikan's.

"D-dad…" She said while tugging onto Narumi's winter cloak. "Is your friend a Prime Minister?"

Narumi gave a small laughter. "No, but she worked for him once. And, she's a widow."

"S-she?!" Mikan raised her voice. "I thought it was a 'he'?! Does she have kids, daddy?"

He gave a long thought and it strikes his mind. "Oh yes. 2 sons… one of them's about your age and another one's an elementary. Mind you, Mikan. You'll be studying in Shibuya High, all right?"

Mikan meticulously nodded. "Um…" She pointed to a guard who just came out from his guard house, heading towards Narumi. "Dad, it's the guard."

"Sorry for interrupting but…" The guard gave a slight nod. "May I know your intentions to the Hyuuga's residence?"

Narumi flashed a smile. "Yes, I'm Narumi Sakura. I'm here to see Mrs. Reiko Hyuuga. I had an appointment with her."

The guard immediately bowed, "Oh, Mr. Narumi! The Lady was expecting you. Please, come in!" He returned to his guardroom and called someone. The gate suddenly moved its way. Narumi entered the mansion's park followed by Mikan, who was in awe.

The garden was amazingly huge. There might have been 10 gardeners who were busy trimming the trees and planting seeds. Mikan bowed to them. The gardeners felt shocked that someone her age would bow to them. They smiled and gave a slight bow. "Daddy… she's really rich, huh? The house's huuuuge! I could get lost, daddy…"

Narumi laughed and grabbed Mikan's tiny hand into his pocket. "Yeah, I could get lost too. Hey, your hand's very cold!"

"I'm nervous, dad…" Mikan started to shiver. "How long have you met her?"

He gave a long pause and then, he spoke. "Um, let's just say… I've met her since my schooling times. I've known her for about 17 years…"

Mikan gave a loud gasp. "You didn't mention any of these things to me. She's that close and I don't even get to meet her before?"

Narumi did not answer that question. Instead, he walked faster towards the door. He rung the bell and the door opened. It was a maid. She greeted us in with grace and led us to the living room. On the way there, Mikan detected a lady about her dad's age sipping on a cup. She looked so beautiful for her age. "Rei… long time no see…"

The woman named Reiko almost choked on her tea. She coughed for a while and looked up. _Narumi and his daughter! To the flesh! Whoa, she's so cute!! _Reiko stood up and walked towards them. "Hello there, Narumi. Sit down please." When he sat on the sofa, Reiko approached Mikan. "Is this… your daughter??"

Narumi nodded, with an awkward expression on his face. "Yes. My precious one. Mikan, this is Reiko Hyuuga."

Mikan gave a bow and faced her. "Good morning, Reiko-san. I'm Mikan Sakura."

Reiko squealed and hugged Mikan tight. "Oh my!! She's so adorable!!!" Mikan gave an obvious blush which made Narumi laughed. She let her off and stared her face. "My, my… She looked exactly like Yuka, Narumi. It's like her clone!"

Mikan's eyes widened. _S-she knew about mom! I haven't got to know about my mom since she died giving birth to me. Dad only tells stories about her character and how he proposed to her._ "Y-you knew about my mom, Reiko-san?"

"Yes, me, Narumi and Yuka used to be best friends for life!" She replied as she patted on Mikan's head. "It was a long time, though. Hm… I'm feeling a bit sad for having 2 sons without a daughter. Narumi, I wouldn't mind you two staying here forever. I'm feeling awfully lonely in this house. Luckily you have a daughter. She might get along well with me."

Narumi nodded. "Yeah. She's a nice girl. Maybe a little bit clumsy, though…"

"Dad!" Mikan blushed at his remarks. Seconds later, a light steps were heard from the stairs. It was coming to Mikan's right hand side. She turned to see a young lad with a jet-black hair coming down the stairs. He had such piercing eyes, which was facing down and owned a pair of earrings on both sides. He was really a good looking boy with a frightening aura.

"Natsu-chan?" Reiko called timidly. "Come here for a while, honey."

Without even looking at his mother, he snapped, "No, I'm busy. I'm going out to meet my friends… It's a whole lot better than looking at you." He continued walking towards the main door. Reiko looked away, feeling hurt with her son's behaviour.

Mikan saw Reiko's expression, so she dashed to the main door and blocked the way where Natsume was heading at. "How could you be so rude in front of your mother? She's so hurt!" Reiko and Narumi looked at those two teenagers.

Natsume stopped walking and found a stranger blocking his path. "**So what**? Get off the way, weirdo. I'm meeting up with my friends!" Reiko felt touched with Mikan's actions but was pain stricken with her son's words.

Mikan frowned and sputtered, "What did you say? 'So what?' Man, you've got nerves! Don't you think it's great having her as your mom?"

Natsume moved closer to Mikan and grabbed her shoulders. "Get. Out. Of. My. Way. Idiot." Facing a boy, who is about her age, at this close range made her blush. She immediately removed his hands from her shoulder and retreated to the left, making a way for him. "Such a loser… You're really vulnerable to my looks, huh? So typical…" He opened the door.

"Y-you… **TAKE THAT BACK!!!!**" Mikan blushed and screamed while pointing to Natsume. He gave an evil grin and shrugged. Natsume walked outside and slammed the door shut. "W-what a nerve!!"

Reiko walked towards Mikan. "Don't worry, Mikan. He's been that way since he was small. I tried talking to him, but he just…" She covered her expression by her bangs. "I'd wish if he could talk to me, even for a minute…" Mikan felt so sorry for Reiko, so she hugged her. "M-Mikan?"

"It felt so good to have a mother. I wonder why he doesn't like it." Mikan said. Narumi only stared at those two getting along well so fast. Reiko led them to their bedrooms. It was situated on the third floor. Narumi's bedroom was next to Mikan's. The room was humongous. A plasma television on the walls, with a king sized bed. There is a laptop on the study table and a journal next to it. The wardrobe was filled with clothes which are about Mikan's size. "R-Reiko-san… I… don't…deserve this… It's…"

"Ah, never mind!" Reiko patted her head. "I wanted to feel how it is to have a daughter. Just try to act as my temporary daughter, all right?" Mikan bowed several times to Reiko to thank her. "No! Don't bow to me, Mikan. Hehehe, it is fine. It's my pleasure to treat you." Reiko whispered to Narumi. His eyes widened and said 'NO!!' but Reiko gave a glare to him. He only nodded. "Your dad and I need to go out for a walk. Business matters. I hope it's all right for you?"

Mikan gave a hand gesture. "Yes, yes! I'm fine. It's an important thing to talk about work, right? Go ahead, I'll be fine!" Reiko kissed her forehead and left with Narumi. Mikan felt her forehead and smiled. "I wished my mom could do that to me…"

She placed her baggage on the bed and started unpacking. Her clothes were hung inside the wardrobe, but she noticed all the dresses that Reiko bought for her. It was pretty. She had never seen this type of clothes back in Nagoya. So, she tried it on. It's a white blouse top with some embroidery at the end corner, forming a sakura petal. A black pleated mini-skirt matching with the top. She heard someone talking from outside, but she did not care. She was changing her clothes, until; the door of her room was opened.

"Yeah, you bet. Sumire was…" A blond haired boy turned to see a pretty girl standing right in front of him. Next to the blond was Natsume, the one who turned the door open.

"**G-G-GET OUT OF HERE!!!!**" Mikan, who was only wearing a camisole and panty, threw pillows at the boys. They immediately retreated and shut the door. "O-Oh s-shoot!!!" She reddened with a million shades of red. "Why does it have to be that guy!?? I thought he left?!!"

Back outside the room, the blonde boy was obviously blushing too. He had never seen a girl changing at Natsume's house. "N-Natsume! You should've told me someone's there!!!!"

"Huh?" He said monotonously, as if he did not see her in that state. "I don't know myself either… Mom just brought that girl in with her dad. How am I supposed to know where she stays in? There are 25 bedrooms here, Ruka. Besides, you used to stay here, in this room. I have no idea why mom chose this room to be hers…"

Ruka blinked and nodded. He used to stay here every time he thinks of having a sleepover. "Natsume… how are we going to face that girl…?" Suddenly he heard the girl in the room sobbing. "Oh no, she's crying…!"

"Should I care? No." He wanted to walk away but he heard Ruka knocking the door. And a soft reply 'C-come i-in.' was heard. Natsume gave a sigh and followed behind Ruka.

Ruka saw Mikan, fully dressed, that is, was crying on the floor. He rushed towards her and comforted her. "I'm sorry. I didn't know that someone was here. This used to be my room before…"

Mikan immediately stopped when she heard the explanation from the blonde boy. "R-really?! Oh no, I shouldn't have stayed here!!" She calmed down when her eyes met his.

"No, never mind. It's okay. I could choose another place. Besides…" He looked at her baggage, which was on her bed. "I'm sure you've unpacked your things. Sorry about that incident…"

_He's so kind and angelic… I can't believe that Natsume's friend is him… Wait… Natsume! He didn't apologize!!_ Mikan rubbed her eyes while nodding to what Ruka said earlier. She pointed to Natsume, who was leaning on the wall, while reading a book. "Y-you! Apologize to me and say sorry for what you've said to your mom!!"

He continued reading the book he saw which was on the floor. "Em… what's this? 'From: Kokoro. Hey, Mi-chan? This is my number. Call me if you feel happy or sad back in Tokyo. I'm always here by your side.' Aha… Another one… 'From: Kitsuneme. You're best pal in the whole universe! Mind calling me, all right? I would call you too, but send me an e-mail, Mikan. We'll--'"

"Hey!!" Mikan stood up after she had just noticed that he was reading her contact book. "G-give me that back, Hyuuga-san!"

"Huh? Hyuuga… san?" Natsume blinked many times. He dodged from every punch she threw at him. "Girls like you have a boyfriend? How pathetic…"

She felt angry with his words. Ruka only watched from behind, worried that a fight might break out. "He's not my boyfriend, idiot!! He's my best friend! Please, give it to me…" She stopped and begged him. It was her most precious item in her life. "It's really important to me…"

The look in her eyes made him throwing the book back at her. "I don't fancy those things… Let's go, Ruka. I'm sure you're done with the apologizing…" He walked back outside, waiting for Ruka.

She fell down to her knees and held the book tightly. Ruka walked up to her and patted her back, saying, "I'm sorry. He's actually a nice guy. I hope you won't misunderstand him…" He gave a warm smile to Mikan and closed the door after he left. "Natsume, that was mean. I'm sure she's from Nagoya, since her accent was Kansai dialect. Don't bully her next time."

Natsume stared at Ruka for a while and gave a nod. "All right. Only if she didn't start first. Once she does, you know what I will do…" Ruka had a sweat drop. "Come, I'll show you to your room…"

Back in her room, she was grateful enough that blonde guy gave a warm smile to her. She felt much better, even though her heart was torn apart due to Natsume's rude behaviour. Mikan climbed to her bed and slept after brushing her teeth. Reiko and Narumi arrived home an hour later, to show Mikan her high school serafuku that was bought from Shibuya High. But they decided to do the next day.

So, how was it? If you don't like it, please don't review. Thanks.


	2. On The Right Track

Yuki: How was it? Bear my grammar mistakes, all right? Review please. No flames accepted… If I somehow copied someone else's plot of story without knowing… gomen nasai! This's purely based on my idea…

**Chapter 2: On The Right Track.**

The next morning, she woke up pretty late. It was eight o'clock and she was feeling that it is rude to oversleep at someone's house this late. She turned on the shower and quickly dressed up with a sweater and a pleated mini-skirt.

Once she got out from the room, she had forgotten the direction to the kitchen. She took the left and walked on, until she entered a swimming pool area. Backing away for about three steps, she bumped into someone that made her fell down on the floor, flat.

"Idiot…" Natsume mumbled as he kicked Mikan's leg. "Oi, are you alive?"

She immediately straightened herself and pointed to Natsume. "Y-you jerk! Say something before I bump into you, pervert!"

"Pervert? You didn't lock the door yesterday, idiot…" Natsume turned back and started to walk away from her. "I wish you luck on finding the way to the dining room…" He waved.

"W-wait!!" She catches him up. "Err… s-sorry about that. It's my fault… so… may I follow you to the dining room?"

He stopped walking and looked at her. She felt nervous when he examined her from head to toe. "No wonder you're from Nagoya. Chubu District, am I right? Such unusual taste, _strawberries_…" He resumed walking, leaving her 5 steps behind.

Petrified with his words, she remembered wearing strawberries… but… it was her underwear. "P-pervert!! Hey, you idiot jerk!" She ran after him, who was walking away really fast even though he was not running. Chasing him here and there, they managed to reach the dining room where Narumi and Reiko were having breakfast. "Daddy!!" She flung into his arms and kissed his cheeks. Natsume glared when she did that. Mikan saw him, but ignoring it.

"Morning, Mikan. Had a nice sleep?" Narumi asked. Mikan gave a huge smile. "That's my girl. Now, take this…" Mikan took a seat and started to eat.

"Idiot…" Natsume mumbled. He sat next to his mom. Seconds later, Ruka came downstairs with a boy in his hand. The boy has a grey hair and looked pretty cute. "Youichi, here…" He opened his arm and the boy named Youichi ran towards his arms. Ruka joined the breakfast, when he sat in front of Mikan. She noticed a rare smile from Natsume, when he patted on Youichi's head.

"H-hey, who's that?" Mikan asked to Natsume. "He's so cute!!"

Reiko replied, "He's Youichi. An elementary student and a brother to Natsume." Mikan gave an 'Oooh…'

Ruka faced Mikan and gave a nod, as a greeting. "Hope you're okay about yesterday's incident?"

Mikan blushed and nodded back. "Yeah, I'm fine now. Thanks."

Reiko and Narumi looked at them and then to each other. She started, "Mi-chan, you've met Ruka already?"

"Em, yeah."

"Eh? Really?" Narumi said and asked, "What happened yesterday? Something wrong, Mikan?" Ruka and Mikan blushed at unison. "You two are blushing… hey… something wrong happened?"

Natsume blurted all the words, "We entered the room, where Ruka used to stay, but we found out that she was changing her clothes. So, she screamed and chased us out. Ruka went in to apologize, and that's it." His words were monotonous.

Reiko choked on the toast she was eating, Ruka almost sputtered his coffee; Mikan bit her finger instead of the bread and Narumi flinched. The concerned friend stood up and patted Reiko's back. "N-N-Natsume… y-you two…" She drank up the tea. "You s-saw her naked?!" Narumi winced when Reiko said those words.

Mikan flushed red, "N-no, Reiko-san! I… I was… I…" Narumi returned back to his seat and looked at his daughter.

"Camisole and underwear. It was strawberries…" Natsume took a bit on the buttered bread. Ruka and Mikan blushed again.

"Y-you jerk!!" Mikan slammed the table and went out of the mansion.

Narumi heaved a sigh. Reiko apologized to Narumi about her son's action. "No, it's not your fault. She's kind of emotional when it comes to this matter. I'll look after her. By the way, she'll be all right after she saw your present, Reiko. I'll excuse myself…" He stood up while bringing a piece of bread out of the house.

Natsume continued eating, as if nothing has happened. Ruka frowned a little bit and said, "I told you yesterday that--"

"She started it. We met near my room. She picked the fight, not me." He said calmly.

Reiko heard what Natsume said and felt like scolding him. Narumi talked to her yesterday that she had to be fierce once in a while, to teach the children. She took a breath and pinched Natsume's ear. "Young boy… Look at me."

Shocked with what his mother was doing right in front of Ruka, he turned back, rubbing his left ear. "What's your problem?!"

"Don't raise your voice to me, young lad!" His mother was abnormally angry today. It was his first time. "You'll go up to Mikan after her father's done. Here…" She handed him a bag filled with serafuku uniforms. "Confront her, and say that you're sorry."

Natsume glared at her and then to the bag. "I only said what really happened. It's not my problem she was in that state yesterday!!"

"Yeah, but you don't know girls from Nagoya. They're naïve unlike the Tokyo girls. They're sensitive to those things. She came from a decent family. An innocent girl like her is different from the girls here. So…" She grabbed Natsume's hand and placed the bag to him. Narumi came back to the table. "Narumi, how's she doing?"

"Hehe, she's pretty hungry. She gobbled up the bread at the Glass House. Upset for a while, but it'll be okay an hour later." Narumi answered. Reiko told Natsume to go, and he did. "Where's he going?"

"Em, I'll tell you later." Reiko smiled and drank up her coffee.

Natsume cursed under his breath for doing this kind of job, an order to console her. Ruka joined him, who walked side-by-side. "Why're you following me?"

"Em… I want to introduce myself properly to her. It was kind of brief yesterday." Ruka commented. "She's different compared to the girls in our city, right?"

"Hn…" Natsume only said that until he reached the Glass House. There, he saw Mikan, squatting down while admiring the strawberries growing prettily. "Ei, idiot strawberries! Looking for suitable prints for your underwear?" He teased.

She winced when she heard the voice. Mikan turned her head to the right and saw him. "Pervert, what are you doing here!!? " He flung the bag to her, she catches it. "Huh?" Mikan looked inside the bag. It was a school uniform. "Huh?? You actually--"

"My mom asked me to give it to you. I won't be dumb enough to buy you one, silly!" He cuts in. Ruka elbowed his arm slightly, warning over his harsh words. Mikan only mumbled.

"Hi, I'm Ruka Nougi. You can call me Ruka." He offered his hand. Mikan accepted it.

"Hello, I'm Mikan Sakura. Nice meeting you, Ruka!" She turned to Natsume. "Well, aren't you going to introduce yourself??"

"You knew me already, there's no point doing one."

"Jeez, you don't need to be so cold towards me!" Mikan totally forgot about the underwear incident, which made her angry. "Oh hey. You two mind showing me around Tokyo? I need a part-time job…"

Ruka blinked. "Huh? Work? You?" He pointed to Mikan. She nodded. "Really? Em… how about a cake shop?"

"Only a cake shop?" Mikan asked. Ruka nodded. "No way… I'll be just like Makino…"

Ruka walked up to her. "We'll show you around Tokyo. Right, Natsume?" He gave an awkward smile to Natsume, which made him agree. "Come, let's go…"

Mikan gave a smile and walked forward first. Natsume felt curious about her presence with her dad in his mansion. "Oi, strawberries? What are you doing in my house?"

They reached the gate and went out. "You want to know why am i staying at your house?" He nodded. "Who asked you to leave yesterday; you could've heard the whole story…"

"Oi, I'm losing my patience here. Tell me!"

"Fine!" She stuck out her tongue like a little girl. "Em, my dad… I think his manager embezzled the company's money. My dad was in a bankrupted state… Luckily… he received a call from your mom, knowing about his condition. So, I'll be staying at your house until my dad found a decent job. Don't worry, I will return back to Nagoya after we could regain back our financial status…"

"Whoa…" Ruka said, with a worried look. "So, you're looking for a part-time to help your dad??" She nodded happily. "Such a kind person you are…"

Natsume did not talk after she mentioned about her real problem.

Once they reached a cake shop, Mikan said, "Em, I'll try to get a job here. I'll be waiting here after I'm done." Ruka nodded, and he left to other place with Natsume. "Huh… I'm in Tokyo. It's a really… different place, compared to Nagoya. I'll have to be braver than usual!!" She took a breath and entered the shop.

A waitress came up to her. "Yes, may I help you?"

"Em… I'm here to look for a part-time job…" Mikan scratched her cheek. "If there's a vacant one…"

The waitress thought for a while. She nodded. "Um, yeah. As a cashier. Would you like to?"

"Yeah, but where's the manager of this cake shop?" Mikan asked politely.

She laughed, "I am the manager, sorry. Ayumi Reihana." She patted on her head. "Em, when can you start to work?"

"How about tomorrow after school? Starting at 4pm? I could work until 9pm." asked Mikan.

She nodded. "Yeah, that'll do. Every hour 300 yen, all right?" Mikan nodded happily. The salary was reasonably high compared to the music store in Nagoya. "See you tomorrow, err… What's your name?"

"Oh, sorry! I'm Mikan Sakura! I'm sixteen years old. Nice to meet you, Ayumi-san." She bowed and then walked out of the shop, waiting for Ruka and Natsume. "Yay, I got the job! Tokyo isn't that bad either…" She looked at the bag which was given from Reiko. "She's so kind… I think I should repay her kindness…" Having to wait about 10 minutes, Ruka and Natsume arrived with a box. "At last! My feet were sore…"

Ruka laughed and said, "Sorry. We were busy selecting muffins." He showed her a box of muffins.

"Whoa, muffins!!" Mikan cheered.

"It's not for you, idiot!" Natsume snapped.

"I know that, pervert!" She folded her arms. "Ruka, what occasion is it for?"

"Well, it's just a helping for a sleepover at Natsume's house. All boys' sleepover." Ruka said happily. "Sorry that girls aren't allowed…"

"No, never mind. I'm just curious." Mikan said while smiling so sweetly at them, until both of them turned their heads away from each other. "Oh, guess what? I've got the job!! I'm a cashier!"

Natsume gave a smirk and said, "Is your math good enough? Being a cashier needs quick mathematic skills…" He was hoping her to fight back, but instead, she silenced and was looking serious. "S-seriously, you don't even know maths!? What an idiot, a major one!"

"Err… not that I don't know but weak at it… Should I resign…?" She was practically confused. She had always ignored Jinno-sensei's lecturing! But…

_She didn't even start to work and now she's thinking of resigning??_ Both Natsume and Ruka thought.

Ruka snickered and suggested that he would help Mikan in mathematics. She jumped for joy and thanked Ruka. Natsume just observed Ruka's behaviour towards Mikan. He was awfully nice to her, which is unusual. He had always been ignorant about girls… but this time? "Ruka. Strawberries. Let's go home. I need a rest…"

"What? It's only 10 o'clock in the morning!!" Mikan whimpered, "A morning walk is good for health!!"

"I have a gymnasium back at home, now hurry up…" Natsume took a step forward towards home. Ruka and Mikan tried to catch him up.

Back at home, Narumi and Reiko were discussing about the work that may be held in England. "No way, really? Why England? It's so far away. I can't meet up with Mikan at all… I could miss her graduation day!"

Reiko was surprised with his acts. _Should a parent feel that way when he or she's going overseas, leaving their children behind? So, maybe Natsume was furious about me because I cared about my career more than… my… children…_ She patted her thigh to attract Youichi's attention. He turned and stared at his mother. "Come here, Youichi…"

"Mommy…" He reached for her and she carried her on her arms, hugging the kid tightly.

Tears rolled down on her cheeks. Narumi noticed that she was crying, so he grabbed the tissue box and handed it to her. "I'm sorry, You-chan… I've been neglecting you so much! I'm sorry… But I have so many things to work on! I… couldn't find a time to spend time with you and Natsume. Forgive me, You-chan…"

They did not notice that the three teenagers took the backdoor from the kitchen. They heard everything what Reiko had said. Reiko, Narumi and Youichi stood up and went out to the front door. Mikan was shocked when she heard that. She looked at Natsume who was staring at the floor, while clenching his fists.

"N-Natsume…" Mikan said, while she poked his arm. (She was afraid to touch him.) "A-are you all right?"

He stormed to the stairs. Ruka just gave a nod to Mikan and chased him. "Hey… Natsume…"

Natsume tucked in his pocket and faced Ruka. "Call the guys. I'll be at my room." Ruka blinked once and then nodded. "Thanks…" He continued to walk towards his room.

Back to Mikan, _Natsume might be envious in me, because I'm so close to my dad, unlike Reiko and him. Natsume was angered by his mother because she was ignoring her children. _"He's such an idiot…" She shook her head. She walked to the third floor and stopped. "N-not again!! I'm lost! This house's too big for me!"

Ruka, who happened to pass by, saw Mikan panicking whether to take the left or right. He smirks when he observed her cute behaviour. "Hey, Mikan. Need a help?"

"Badly!!" She ran after him and begged, "Help me… I need to go back to my room…"

"Ahaha, all right." He patted on her head.

X

Noises were too loud. Mikan could not concentrate on her Math works. She was trying hard to solve them. She tried plugging her ears with headphones linking to the laptop, which was provided by Reiko. But it failed. Natsume's room, which Ruka showed her hours ago, was quite far. But the noises could even reach her room. She stood up, and walked towards the noise.

Once she was confident enough to think that it was Natsume's room, she knocked the door. But, there was no reply. She knocked again. No answer. Maybe the noise was too loud until they can't even hear her knocking. She tried again with her full power. Her fist landed on something soft.

"Oi, what are you trying to do?" Natsume said. She had just punched his abdomens. But, he didn't flinch. "That mere punch won't get you anywhere, strawberries."

She removed her fist and yelled at him, "I'm trying to study, but your radio or whatever it is actually reached my room. It's very impolite of you to--"

A boy with red hair called Natsume, "Hey, Natsu-kun. What's taking…? Hey I see a cute looking girl. No wonder you were taking time! Is she your girlfriend?"

Mikan's face became as red as ever. "No way in hell! Hey, Natsume! Slow down the volume, will you?"

Natsume stared at her. "An idiot like you studies? Dream on… I bet it must've been Mathematics, right??"

She was angry with his words. "W-well, even though I'm not smart, I will work hard!" Two or three guys came and stood behind Natsume. "W-what is it…?"

"Hm… is she going to be in our school, Natsume?" A boyish face asked Natsume, who obviously ignored him. "She's so cute, right? Is she your niece or something?"

This time, he replied. "No, a total stranger. No one in particular."

Mikan folded her arms and started walking away. "I knew it'll be useless to talk to him." She heard him shutting the door and the noise of the radio or whatever it is started to lessen. "Eh? He lowered the volumes down…" She smiled and returned to her room

Her first day of school was… late. She woke up at 7am. After having shower and dressed up in the serafuku, which Reiko had presented her, she walked down. This time, she remembered how to go to the dining room. Her uniform might be a little bit showy. It's a very mini-skirt, all right. A pleated one.

After walking for three minutes, she managed to reach the dining room. "At last!!" She rushed towards the table. "I thought I've forgotten about the directions!" Ruka, who was drinking his orange juice, reddened to see Mikan in a serafuku. He had not thought that she would look so pretty in it. "Ruka, thanks for lecturing me yesterday. It kind of helped me."

"W-well, you're w-welcome…" He started to stutter. "Nice uniform there."

Mikan smiled in reply. "Where's Natsume, Reiko-san and daddy? How about Youichi?"

Ruka pointed to the ceiling. "Sleeping, I guess. I've heard they stayed late at night discussing about a project. Natsume's in the kitchen. Youichi went out already, since the elementary students have an early activity today."

Mikan took a seat in front of him, while nodding. "I see. Hey, I wanted to know… What time does the school starts?"

"Oh, 8 o'clock." Mikan winced; she thought the school will start at 7.30am. "Oh, you're from Nagoya. Hehe, in Tokyo, the school starts at 8 am, Mikan. Sorry or not informing you."

She flapped her hand. "Nah… It's all right. Well, once in a while, it's quite all right to wake up early." Mikan thought of something. "Hey, do you want to taste my very own Miso soup recipe? It belonged to my late gramps."

Ruka was surprised. He had never tasted Miso soup before. He is a foreigner, actually. "Oh…? Well, I would love to, but… is there any time?"

"Oh, of course! It takes only 10 minutes! Wait, I'll get the ingredients…" She entered the kitchen and found Natsume… "C-cooking! Y-you're c-cooking!!" She rudely pointed to Natsume and the pan he was frying.

He narrowed his eyes, "So what? A human needs to cook, idiot!" He blushed slightly when he saw her in the school uniform. He resumed on frying the omelette.

"G-god! You're scary!" She walked up to him. "Hm… not bad, though."

"I don't need your comment." Natsume picked up the pan and placed the omelette on a plate and brought it to the dining table. "Such a troublesome idiot…"

Mikan took a peek inside the refrigerator. Every ingredient's inside the fridge, so she took out one by one and started to cook. It took her about 7 minutes and the last ingredient, which is the seaweed was added inside. After stirring for a minute, she poured the soup in 5 bowls.

She walked towards the table and gave one to Ruka. He tasted it and… "Hmm… nice! This's my first Miso soup!"

"Really?" She brightened up. To his left, she saw Natsume, eating the omelette. "Hey, Natsume? Do you want--"

"No."

"Aww! Hey, it's really nice!" Mikan insisted. She took a spoon of soup and said, "Here, taste it!" Ruka stared at disbelief. Mikan was too brave to do that in front of Natsume.

Narumi walked towards the dining table and was overwhelmed with Mikan and Natsume's situation. "Dear… what are you doing? Spooning a guy? That's just wrong…"

"Ehh… why not?" Mikan whined, while she sipped on the spoon she had just offered to Natsume. "Kokoro Yome-kun accepted it… To think about Kitsuneme…"

Narumi placed a hand on his head and smiled dryly. "Mi-chan… Koko and Kitsu are your childhood buddies. It's all right for them. But, usually it's an act for a pair of lovebirds or married couple. And of course, feeding the sick."

"Mmm… weird rules…" Mikan eyes at her dad. "Anyway, dad? You want one?" She placed a bowl on the table after he said 'yes'. "Anyway, Ruka? If you want to have more, it's in the fridge. Just warm it up, okay?" Ruka nodded. "I'll go to school first. The headmistress called me to go to her office for a while." She excused herself and kissed her dad's cheek. Mikan walked out of the mansion and went to school.

Natsume, however, stared at the bowl on the tray. He bent over and took one. He drank it up, leaving Ruka ogling at him. "What?"

"Y-you just…"

"Kind of good… but needs a little pinch of salt…" Natsume muttered. Narumi couldn't help but smile at Natsume. "I'm leaving… Hey, you there." He shifted his amber eyes on Narumi.

"Oh, yeah?"

"Tell my mom… that I'm sorry about being rude to her." He left the house after that.

Ruka, just stared as he left. "Man, he's changed!"

"People are strange, sometimes." Narumi said to Ruka.


	3. Confusions

Yuki: Chapter 3's there. Enjoy! No flames accepted… I'm a soft-hearted person… I get easily hurt if someone talks bad… sorry!

**Chapter 3: Confusions.**

Mikan took a slow walk, since she's quite early today. She was wondering how the students will be. _Kokoro said Tokyo people are kind of snobbish. Not to mention, Natsume was one of them too… Oh no, what if they reject me?! No way, I'll be in the castaway group!_

Natsume was a fast walker, so he managed to reach Mikan. "Man, you're really slow…"

Mikan stopped and saw him walking behind her. "Oh, heyyy!" She went up to him. "You were worried about me?"

"Don't get such a silly idea, strawberries…" Natsume shook his head.

Mikan pouted and mumbled. As they walked together, other school students who attended the same school were whispering something about Mikan. She looked around and received glaring from every corner. "Hey, what's going on? Why's everybody looking at me suspiciously?"

"Cause they just noticed that you're an idiot hanging out with me."

She only silenced when she felt uncomfortable standing next to Natsume, so she tried avoiding him. The farther she got away from Natsume, the glares lessen. "Oh… The problem's with you, Natsume. Not me."

"She's dense…" He shook his head and walked faster.

Mikan chased him, "Hey! Wait, I need to ask you where the headmistress room is!!"

"Jeez, you've just said there was a problem with me, so don't follow me, idiot!"

X

She was standing right in front of the headmistress's room. She was feeling nervous after remembering what Kokoro had said to her. Natsume grew impatient, so he 'helped' her to knock the door.

"N-Natsume!! Why did you do that for?!" She shouted at him.

"Waiting there's just going to make yourself looking like a total idiot…" He paused and affirmed, "Oh yeah, you are one, after all." A reply of 'Come in' was heard from the headmistress. "Go in!" She shuffled her shoes, hesitating on entering the room. _It's like she's a foreigner in Tokyo, jeez… _ He took her hand and opened the door.

The headmistress took out her glasses when she saw Natsume pulling a girl inside the room. "N-Natsume Hyuuga, what are you doing here?"

"The new girl from Nagoya." He said as he released her hand. "Go on, idiot."

She took two steps ahead and bowed to her. "I… I'm Mikan Sakura…"

The headmistress's eyes glinted. "Oh, Reiko and Narumi went up to me. So, you're the kid, huh? Here, fill in these forms and sent it back to me after you've finished it."

Mikan walked forward and received a file which contained the required personal details of a person. "Oh… All right. Is that it?" The elderly woman nodded and asked her to leave, because she's going to have a meeting. After leaving the room, she sighed in relief. "Huuh, that was scary. I thought I was going to get eaten…"

"Just who the heck gave you that idea, idiot!?" Natsume snapped. He took the number on the file and read, "3-B. That's my class…" He gave it back to Mikan. "Come, I'll show you around…"

"Thanks, Natsume." It was her first time calling him by his name so sweetly. "It's really nice of you to help me around. I appreciate your effort…"

"Idiot… An idiot like you needs a help from the smart one, strawberries." Natsume said, and resumed walking towards his class, hiding his blushing face.

_Maybe… he's not bad as I thought he was…_

X

Natsume slides open the sliding door and entered first. The teacher who was inside the class looked at the entrance door and was excited when he saw Mikan's face. He was 6 foot tall and has a warm smile.

"Are you Mikan Sakura?" The teacher asked her. She gave a bow and wished him 'Good morning'. "Ah, great! You're here. Wait here for a while." He resumed to his table and said, "Class… return to your seats…"

Ruka said hi to Natsume. "Where were you? I tried to find you."

"Somewhere out there..." He opened his manga and read on. Ruka sweat dropped.

The teacher, named Misaki said, "As I said last week, there will be a new student, right?" The whole class replied 'Yeah…' Misaki smiled and said, "Here, the girl had just arrived from Nagoya days ago." He faced to the door. "Come in, Mikan." She stepped forward and stood next to Misaki-sensei. "She's Mikan Sakura. She's a temporary student because she might return back to Nagoya if she wishes to."

Mikan gave a bow and greeted, "Good morning, I'm Mikan Sakura. Nice to meet you."

There was a grunt coming from the girls meanwhile the boys just gave a whistle. "Right, right. Behave yourselves, students. Mikan… Could you sit in front of the boy who was reading the manga?"

She gave a nod to Misaki-sensei and walked towards the empty seat. She felt less of a burden since she will be sitting in front of Natsume. She sat on the seat and felt weird with the surroundings. There are guys who dyed the hair green and pink all over. She was feeling scared all of a sudden. There was a guy who pierced his tongue too.

_It's obvious she's scared to death in this class… Idiot…_Natsume stared at her back, who was wincing terribly when a group of guys were whistling at her. She purposely didn't take notice of them. When the class was over, the guys crammed around her, asking whether she's still a single or anything related to that.

"Hey, stop that!" Ruka shouted to the boys. "She's a new girl, don't disturb her."

The guys gave a stern look at Ruka and started laughing. "Woo… since when the girly-boy talked so loud, huh? It's at best to keep your mouth shut--"

Natsume slammed the manga on the table and glared at them. "Go back to your seats and shut up."

The guys flinched and scrambled to their seats. Mikan blinked twice and looked back to Natsume. She smiled to him and Ruka and gave a slight nod of thanks. She noticed a black haired girl, was reading a book in peace. She owned a pair of amethyst eyes, which attracts Mikan to talk to her.

"Hi, I'm Mikan. May I know what your name is?" She asked in a friendly way. The black haired girl turned her head and faced Mikan.

"I'm Hotaru Imai." She gave a nod and resumed to read her 'Science of Wonders' novel.

"Hmm, do you want to go out for a recess with me later? I'm still new around here." Mikan pleaded.

"Fine…" Hotaru replied. "I'll be your friend since you're lonely…"

Mikan nodded and was happy that she managed to get a friend like her. A grey haired girl stepped up to her. "Yes?"

"Hi, I'm Otonashi. Nice to meet you. I've always wanted to meet someone from Chubu District."

"Oh, nice to meet you too. I'm Mikan Sakura."

Soon after that, looks like Mikan had befriended almost every girl in the whole Middle School Division. Ruka was amazed with her friendly attitude. "I told you, she's unique…"

"Hm…" Natsume simply tucked in his hands in his pocket and walked towards the passageway with Ruka.

X

"Yeah, and I met a lot of friends. They're quite nice, even though they looked a little bit scary…" She was eating her food when her mouth's full.

"Idiot, stop talking when your mouth's full!" Natsume got angry when the rice from her mouth was spitting on his face.

Mikan chewed on her food and said, "S-sorry!!! I didn't mean it!!"

Reiko looked down to her glass which was half-full. "I need to explain something to you all…" Everybody turned to look at her. "I have a big project coming on in England. Narumi had to follow along with the business trip. The bad news is… the business trip takes up to minimum duration of a year."

Mikan dropped her chopsticks. She turned to look at her dad in disbelief. Her dad's going to overseas for one solid year. And that's only a minimum period. "D-dad?"

Narumi suddenly lost his appetite to eat. He looked straight to Mikan. "I'm sorry…"

There was a cold atmosphere at the dinner table. Ruka felt uneasy at the moment. "Don't worry, dad. It's your career. I've no rights to block your trips. Go on, dad. I have a lot of help in this house. But…" She paused and looked at her dad. "Please write a letter to me or send an e-mail… I need to know how you're doing at England."

Narumi was touched with Mikan's words and gave a nod. He patted on her head and kissed her hair. "Of course I will…"

Reiko only stared at the touching moment of Narumi-Mikan. She felt so sad that she could not express the love towards his son, Natsume, that openly. "We'll be leaving by next Monday, Mikan. So, I hope you two could enjoy before we depart."

Mikan gave a smile and said, "Ehh… Reiko-san! You liked my Miso soup??"

She was startled. Reiko looked at her meals. One of them was her soup. "Oh, yes. I've been drinking the soup a lot. So, it was your recipe?"

Mikan said, "No, it's my late gramps." Light footsteps were heard. It was Youichi. He sat next to Mikan and smiled at her. "Hey, there." She cupped his cheek and said, "My, he's really cute!!"

"Tempura…" Youichi pointed to a plate. Mikan took the plate and gave it to him. He took 5 of it and started to eat.

"That's very… rare!" Ruka said in surprise. "Youichi was never that kind to any girls before. He might bite your hand when you tried to touch his cheeks!"

"R-really??" Mikan took a look at Youichi. "But… he's so cute!"

Natsume stared at Mikan, who was practically helping Youichi passing the foods for him. He smirks and continued eating.

After finishing the dinner, Mikan told Youichi to wash his hands. She escorted him to the kitchen. "She loves kids…" Narumi placed his elbow on the table. "Especially a younger brother."

Reiko smiled as she saw Mikan carrying Youichi by the arms to wash his hands. "She's exactly like Yuka… I missed her so much…"

Natsume and Ruka excused themselves to leave the adults on their topic. Natsume, followed by Ruka, went inside the kitchen and saw Mikan wiping the smudge on Youichi's mouth. "Oi, polka dots. Stop acting as if you're his mom…"

Mikan straightened herself and held onto Youichi's shoulder. "Where's his room? I wanted to see him off."

Ruka answered her question. "Mikan, his room's the same with Natsume. As you can see, Natsume's room is like 3 rooms connected. Since Natsume's favourite's Youichi, he decided to share a room with him."

She mumbled. "Aww, I was thinking of playing games with him…" Youichi went towards Natsume's arms. "Em, good night. I need to borrow the phone for a while…"

"Don't talk that much." Natsume said to her, when she was standing beside him. "Less than an hour."

Mikan smiled. "All right!" She walked towards the living room and lifted the cordless phone. Ruka left the mansion to return back to his house near Shinjuku. Her heart leaped when the receiver answered the call. "Kitsuneme!"

The receiver was thrilled too. "M-Mikan??" He was resting on his bed, reading some horror manga. "Jesus, what took you!? All of us were worried to death, thinking that you might've been dead or something!!"

She rested on a couch. "Right… so you were expecting something that horrible, huh? Aww, I missed all of you guys… Everything's great here in Tokyo. They're really fashionable, though. How are Kokoro and Nonoko going on? Are they good?"

"Hell no. They've been fighting a lot these days…" Kitsuneme joked around. "Just kidding… They're really lovey-dovey. Sickens me, though. If you were here, you might experience the same way I do."

Natsume, who was monitoring Mikan's behaviour, told Youichi to wait for him in the room. As soon as he left, Natsume took out his manga and sat across to Mikan.

"Kitsuneme, hey… hold on for a second…" She said to Natsume, "I need privacy…"

"Huh? For what? Calling your lover?" He grinned maliciously. "Why don't you get a cell phone yourself? So that I won't overhear the convo."

"Jeez…" She returned to Kitsuneme. "Sorry about that… Em, some guy was teasing me… No way, not my boyfriend. Yeah, a pervert…"

"Oi, stop criticizing me… You own far worse personality than I do."

"Anyway, Kitsuneme. I have a time limit to call. Probably I will buy a cell phone…" Mikan thought over about buying one. "See you. I got to go for my part-time work. Say hi to my friends, all right? Love you, bye-bye!" She hung up, and failed to notice that Natsume's ear twitched when she said, 'Love you'.

"Some guy you have back in Nagoya, huh?" Natsume flipped on another page of manga. "Hurry up and get changed. We're leaving by 30 minutes…" Mikan went up and dressed casually. "Right. So, what time are you coming back home? My mom told me to ask you those details."

"About 9pm?"

"Are you nuts? That's so late!" Natsume scowled. "This's not Nagoya, for your information!"

"Ah, don't worry about me. I'm tough!"

"You were frightened to death back at school. Outside Tokyo, there are far worse than those in school."

Mikan gasped, "No way, really?!" She started to panic. "Hey, Natsume?? Could you protect me? I meant, like, watching over me?" She placed both of her hands together and begged with high hopes. He grinned and nodded.

Natsume whistled, the room echoed and Youichi walked downstairs. "All right, I'm doing this cause you're an idiot."

She wore a muffler and walked out of the house first. Then, once she reached the cake shop, she wore the uniform and stood at the cashier. Mikan was having problems with the job as a cashier, because she accidentally typed on the wrong buttons. Natsume, who was drinking a hot chocolate felt annoyed with her stupidity. He told Youichi to stay put and then walked up to Mikan.

"Oi, idiot…" He said poking to her head. "Are you really a stupid fool? You're not supposed to press it after scanning the items, you dunce…"

"H-hey, I know that too. I just forgot!" Mikan rubbed on her forehead. "Since you're so good, monitor me from behind and see whether I'm right or wrong."

He shrugged and placed a chair behind her. Warning after warning, she still made the same mistakes. After the clock struck 9pm, Mikan received the salary instantly from Ayumi and left the shop.

"Wah, I've got lots of money! 1500 yen! Yeah, if I keep this up… I could help daddy!"

"Don't be too optimistic…" Natsume piggybacked Youichi. "That's a little cash; you can't help him in that manner…"

"It will be good if I managed to save money from now on…" Mikan mumbled under her breath. "I wish he will be doing well in England. I'll miss him and your mom too. Don't you miss her?"

Natsume did not answer but, "I did. But it's no use."

X

A week has passed by, the whole 'family' went to the airport and saw them departing. Natsume, Youichi and Mikan were the only ones in the mansion. Chauffeurs, butlers, maids and gardeners are there too, but life seems lonely without the adults.

Mikan woke up early in the morning and decided to take a jogging outside. Without waking up Natsume and Youichi, she sneaked out from the mansion and jogged out. "Ahhh… the morning breeze is just great… If only Natsume--" She bumped into a guy and fell down hard on the floor.

"Oh man, I'm so sorry!" said a guy, offering a hand towards Mikan. She rubbed her backside and looked up. It was a dark haired shounen about 19 years old. He had a small star shaped mark on his upper left cheek. "A-are you all right??"

Mikan accepted his help and said, "I'm sorry too. I was busy thinking about something, I've let my mind float around, ahaha!"

The guy sweat dropped. After being friendly all of a sudden, he introduced himself, "I'm Ando Tsubasa... I'm meeting up with my distant cousin whom I haven't really met all these years…"

Mikan gave a nod as a respect and said, "I'm Mikan Sakura. I've migrated from Nagoya. Anyway, good luck about your cousin. What's his name?"

"Hyuuga Natsume."

X

Natsume woke up early and saw Youichi eating the ready-made pancakes, which was on the table. He was wondering where Mikan is. He knocked her door, and opened it. No one was there. He was worried that she had left. So, he rushed down and took his winter cloak, just after he turned the door knob, he found Mikan and some strange guy holding hands, while they're walking towards the entrance.

_What is she thinking?! Bringing a stranger to a house just like that?! And what's with their hands?!!_ Natsume wore on his coat and took light steps towards them. "Oi, strawberries. Bringing a stranger to my house is forbidden, all right?"

Mikan moved her face from Ando and towards Natsume. "Oh, hey Natsume! Good morning! Look, this is your cousin, Ando Tsubasa. He said that Reiko-san asked him to monitor us. Isn't this great??"

Giving a disbelief look at Mikan, he darted to the Tsubasa, who was giving out his hand to shake. "Hi, I'm Ando Tsubasa. I'm on your mother's side."

Natsume replied with a cold glare and then turned back. "Whatever…" He returned back inside the house, but Tsubasa caught him by his words…

"Jealous, aren't you?" Tsubasa teased.

Natsume stopped and turned his head to Tsubasa. "Why would I waste my time with something like that?" He opened the door and slammed it shut after entering it.

Mikan was aghast with Natsume's rude behaviour. "Jeez, why would he go that far for? Come on in. I'm not sure which room you're staying but… feel free to ask Natsume." She entered the house and told Tsubasa to leave the baggage near the stairs. "I'll find that Natsume. Could you wait with that boy over there?" She pointed to Youichi, who's still eating pancakes.

"Em, okay." Tsubasa scratched his hat and walked towards Youichi.

Minutes later, she managed to find Natsume's room. She knocked the door. Natsume opened it. "Hey… I would like to know which room he's supposed to stay in."

"Why would I even bother telling you?" He said as he was taking his towel from a hanger. "Leave, I'm going to take a shower."

Mikan went inside the room and shouted, "Hey, he's your distant cousin! He came all the way from Hokkaido just to guard us."

Natsume walked toward a door at a corner. "Get out, I'm changing my clothes, idiot."

"No, I'll stay here until you apologized to your cousin!!" Mikan demanded while banging his main door. "Go down, or else--" Natsume took off his shirt and left him half-naked. "Y-you! W-what are you d-doing!!?"

He looked at her petrified state. "I'm changing clothes, idiot. Get out of my room, if you don't want to see far worse than this."

Mikan was trembling badly; she had never seen other boy's body besides her dad's. She turned around and sat on the floor. "I'm not leaving until you say sorry to Tsubasa!!" She slapped her cheeks from reddening.

He said, "Suit yourself. You're a pervert now, not me…"

She looked back because she was fuming with anger right now. She immediately stood and pointed, to the boy who had a towel wrapped on his waist. "Y-you… I'll get you someday!" She ran out of the room, in embarrassment.

"She's so stupid…" He gave a smile and entered the bathroom.

Back to Mikan, her heart was thumping badly. She was like a fossilized statue back then. _He's got a good physique… AHH!! What am I THINKING?!!!_ She hits her head many times on the wall and walked towards the dining room. She took a seat across to Tsubasa and Youichi.

"Em, he'll turn up later, Ando-san."

Tsubasa, who was cupping his cheeks with both hands, flinched when he heard her calling him 'san' at the end of his surname. "M-Mikan… I'm still young… I just turned 19 a month ago…" He said with a sweat drop on his head.

"Ah, so what shall I call you then?" Mikan asked.

"Well, it'll be great if you could call my name instead. Our age gap isn't that big, so I guess it'll be all right."

"Ah, so it's Tsubasa then?" Mikan repeated his name many times.

"Yeah, it meant 'Wings'. Good name, huh?" He chuckled a bit.

"Yeah. I was wondering…" She picked up Youichi and placed him on her lap. "How was Hokkaido? I only heard that it's a beautiful place!"

As they were busy talking, Natsume who had just finished bathing walked downstairs. He was wearing a black turtleneck sweater which makes him look handsome. He sat 2 chairs away from Tsubasa and Mikan.

"So…" Natsume eyed at him. "Until when are you staying here? I hate outsiders…"

Mikan looked at him in scepticism. "My goodness, Natsume. He's your cousin!"

"So? Being a cousin doesn't mean I have to be polite to him…" Natsume snapped at Mikan. When she stared at him, unknowingly, her face flushed. "Oh, someone's remembering things now…"

"No, I'm not!" Mikan looked at Tsubasa. "Hey, I'll just randomly select a room for you, all right? It must've been tiring for you to search for this house in such a busy city…" She grabbed his hand after he took his baggage up the stairs.

"Who does she think she is in this house?" Natsume eyed them as they went up.


	4. Months Without Adults

**Chapter 4: Months Without Adults.**

It has been for 2 months since Mikan stayed at Natsume's residence. Nobody else knew that she was staying there, or else, the Natsume fan club will make a huge deal. Natsume told Mikan that she might be trampled to death by the fan girls. He obviously was trying to threaten her. Hotaru Imai, Mikan's current best friend in Tokyo, was getting fishy about where she stays.

"Mikan…" Hotaru said, as she turned her head to her. Mikan stopped from eating her bento. "I'm curious… Why are you so frightened when I asked where you lived?"

Mikan choked on the onigiri she was eating, Natsume winced and Ruka gave a loud gasp. Hotaru turned to her and then behind her. Mikan panicked, "No, ahaha… I meant, my house is a wreck; I don't want anyone to enter it. That's why!"

The violet eyes swivelled from Natsume and then to Ruka. She gave a sly grin and then looked at Mikan. "Of course… I believe you, Mikan…" Ruka heaved a sigh. "Then, I'll go to your house and help you clean it." Mikan's hair started to rip one by one. "Why, is there any problem? I hope not…"

Ruka talked to Hotaru, "Em… I think Mikan doesn't really want to let anyone to visit her house, Imai…"

"… Fine…" Hotaru managed to say.

After the school, Mikan took separate ways with Natsume to reach the house. Since the coast is clear, she managed to enter the house after talking to the guard. The guard did not notice that behind Mikan was Hotaru.

When she turned the doorknob open, Natsume and Youichi were watching the television and Ando was reading a magazine on a sofa. "Hey guys! I'm back…" Tsubasa waved lazily at Mikan, welcoming her back.

Natsume ignored her but he detected someone was standing behind Mikan. He walked up to Mikan and shoved her away. "As I expected, Imai…"

Mikan jumped forward and turned back. "H-Hotaru!!"

"Hi, Mikan. Nice house… Staying with the most popular kid, Natsume Hyuuga?" Hotaru said expressionlessly. "Interesting…"

Mikan begged, "Hotaru, please. Don't tell this secret to anyone, please…"

Natsume moved his eyes towards Mikan. He scoffed and turned away. "I doubt that. She might tell the whole world…"

"I promise not to tell." Mikan and Natsume widened their eyes. "But in return, I would like to stay with Mikan for a month here."

"Up to you…" Natsume walked up to a sofa. "Make yourself at home." He continued watching the television.

Mikan's face lightened up, "Hey, this is so cool! Stay at my room, okay? We could play some games! And with Youichi too."

Hotaru opened her bag and it reassembled into a big luggage. Everybody stared at her baggage. "It's a school bag as well as a travelling bag. I'm staying alone in my apartment back in 3-Chome, so, I don't need any permission from anyone. Mikan, where's your room?" Mikan nodded and brought her upstairs.

Tsubasa paused from reading and then faced Natsume. "Is it all right for you? You trust that Hotaru girl?"

"Whatever…" He ignored Tsubasa's commentary.

Back to Mikan and Hotaru, they entered the room. "Here, this is my room. It's pretty big but it'll be all right if both of us stay here, right?"

Hotaru gave a look around the room. "I guess that'll do. Mikan?" She looked at her. "Are you related to Natsume? Or is he your boyfriend?"

Mikan gaped at her and blushed. "No way! He's not my boyfriend. Anyway, I'll tell you why I'm in Tokyo…"

X

Later, that night… Mikan wanted to invite Youichi to her room to play a board game with him. Hotaru was taking a bath, so Mikan took the initiative to ask Natsume permission.

He opened the door after hearing a knock. "What now?"

"What do you mean? I didn't ask anything today, jeez…" Mikan mumbled. "May I borrow Youichi for a while?"

"No."

"Come on, be sporting! Just for a board game…!" Mikan whined. He turned his back and sat next to Youichi who was doing his homework.

"He's busy now." Natsume was giving full attention to Youichi's workbook. "Close the door, if you're done."

_He's helping Youichi with his homework… How sweet is that?! I didn't know he's that kind…_ She was smiling non stop and made Natsume annoyed about her.

"Oi, stop giggling like an idiot. Get out now." Natsume growled.

Mikan shook her head and walked towards him. She squatted down and said, "You're so kind, helping your little brother with his homework. Hey, maybe you should teach me sometimes!"

"It'll be a pain teaching an idiot. I don't want to waste my energy." He corrected Youichi's mistake and showed him the right way. Consciously, he felt that she kept staring at him. He darted his eyes to her. "What are you staring at?"

"Hm…" She drew closer to him, still staring at his eyes. "It's different…"

He blushed red and pushed her away by placing a hand to her face, in order for her to stop staring. "Stop doing that, it's annoying!"

"Ah, it returned back!" She was gazing at him. "Your eyes. It changed."

"Stop talking nonsense things. Get out; you're in a guy's room!"

"Geez, so what? I've went to my guy friend's room a lot back in Nagoya. We played a lot of games, especially cards. What's so unusual about that?" Natsume's ears twitched. "I know! Why don't you join the game along with us? It'll be better!"

"No way."

Mikan pouted and scribbled her finger on the floor. "Are you sure? Tsubasa agreed to. Come on…" She pulled his sleeves. "Nat-su-me!!"

He still ignored Mikan, but Youichi closed his book after finishing his homework. "Ah, you've finished?" The boy nodded. "All right, go to sleep then."

Mikan hugged Youichi and said, "Come. With. Us." She gave a puppy dog eyes at Natsume. He managed to avoid it, and stood up.

"I said no! Can't you understand Japanese?" Mikan released Youichi from her. When Natsume wanted to walk away, she snugs his jacket. The problem is Natsume. He was walking fast but when she tugged his jacket so hard, it made him trip and… landed on top of Mikan. Youichi clasped his mouth and blushed red.

Mikan was alarmed with the position. His face was 5 centimetres apart. He realised what he was doing, so he stood up quickly. "Idiot, don't just snag my jacket like that! Look what happened just now. Jeez…"

She crawled towards the door, with a blushing face. Mikan was shocked with her actions that led her into a deeper problem. Natsume understood what she felt, so he didn't say much either. She practically crawled her way to her room, finding Hotaru in pyjamas. Hotaru sensed something was wrong, so she started first.

"Something awkward happened to you?" Hotaru asked calmly, while taking out a CD from her bag. Mikan immediately shook her head and approached her. "Liar, I could see something in your eyes…"

Mikan surrendered to Hotaru. She told her the whole incident. "Wah, Hotaru! Why is it Natsume? He's such an idiotic, fool, and arrogant--"

Tsubasa entered the room, because both Hotaru and Mikan invited him to play a board game. He cuts in Mikan's sentence. "Maybe he likes you?"

Mikan winced and looked back. "Tsubasa… you're here! And no way in hell that he likes me. Come, sit here." She patted on the floor next to her. He walked towards them and sat down.

"Well, I thought the same way Tsubasa did, though…" Hotaru said as she was eating a slice of apple pie. "It's just a hypothesis. Don't take it so seriously."

Tsubasa let out a huge grin on his face. "Well, my girlfriend back in Hokkaido used to hate me a lot. But she came to like me. Maybe it will happen to you, huh Mikan?"

Mikan messed up her hair and whined, "Stop saying those stuffs for now. I want to play…" She assembled the board game and then out of no where, Youichi sat next to Mikan. "Eh? You-chan? What are you doing here?"

"Natsume-niichan let me to go and play…" Youichi said in a child-like tone. "He said that I need rest…"

Tsubasa placed his finger on his chin and smiled. "All right. Let's start the game, shall we?" Everybody in the room said 'Yeah!'

X

Natsume woke up and began to make up his bed. After doing so, he checked his little brother whether he is asleep or not. Youichi's still there, sleeping like an infant. He smiled and covered him with the blanket. He is often grouchy in the morning, so in order to cast away that mood, he took an early shower at 5.30am, even though it's only Saturday.

He turned off the charger of his cell phone and snuck it into his pocket. Natsume wore an AX sleeveless top and a khaki pants. As he walked downstairs, he met up with Tsubasa and Mikan, talking in the living room. "What's that idiot doing with him at this hour?"

"No way!!" Mikan screeched in a girlish tone. "Man, it's too expensive!!"

Tsubasa almost fainted with her voice, since she was sitting next to him. "Mikan, everything's like that. It's an average price!"

She pointed to the magazine. "Hey, back in Nagoya, it's not that expensive! Jeez, a normal cell phone without a camera function costs 50,000 yen?!" She shook her head. "No way… I have to keep my money for my dad!"

"Yeah, I know that, Mikan. But…" Tsubasa paused to point the magazine. "Which phone do you want to buy? Since you've missed your friends so much…"

Natsume silently walked behind them and sat on a sofa in front of them. "Ah, ohayo Natsume!!" Mikan wished him.

Ignoring her wish, he said, "Cell phone, huh? Why don't you use the house phone?"

Mikan shook her head. "I don't want to. The bills might be expensive if I talked too long."

"Don't tell me all this while you haven't had a phone?" Tsubasa asked Mikan.

She lowered her head. "I had 2 but… it's confiscated." Tsubasa patted her back. Mikan stood up and said, "I'm going out…"

Tsubasa quoted, "Sorry, Mi-chan. I can't follow you because I have to meet up with my college friends at Meiji Shrine Park near Harajuku…"

"No, never mind me. I'm only saying that. See you, Tsubasa!" She saw him walking out of the house, waving at her. "Hey, Natsume?"

"What?" He said, not looking at her.

"Come along with me, all right?" Mikan requested politely. "I need a companion…"

"What about Imai?" He looked at her.

"She went out already. Hotaru will be back at 5 pm. I have no idea what she's doing but…"

"I'm going out with Ruka." Natsume said, while he was walking to the kitchen.

"Oh…" She replied in disappointment. Natsume sensed the odd tone from her, so, he stopped walking. "Well, all right. I'll be back within an hour or two, okay?"

"No, I meant, we could go out with Ruka." Natsume turned back. Mikan turned her head to him. "Let's wait for him, idiot."

Mikan felt so happy that Natsume is going to accompany her, along with Ruka. She advanced forward and gave him a light hug. He blushed red. "I'll prepare a breakfast for your kindness, all right?" She let him off.

"No need, idiot strawberries…" Natsume tried to frown, but failed. He was still affected with the hug. "I can cook myself… I'm not disabled!"

She let a growl, "Hey, I'm not an idiot!" She marched towards the kitchen. He smiled faintly and heard the doorbell. It must be Ruka.

He casually strolled to the door and unlocked it. "… Who are you…?"

Mikan opened the fridge and took out the necessary ingredients for the meal. She was overjoyed with Natsume's unusual politeness. Suddenly, the memory of him being on top of her accidentally came back. She shook her head violently to erase it fully.

"Oi, ichigo kara…" Natsume called from the dining table. "Someone… is here. Quickly get you bums here, idiot!"

Feeling both curious and confused, she wiped her hands on a dry towel and peeked from the kitchen entrance. Who would want to meet her…? Her eyes widened when she saw that person. With her right arm pointing at the person beside Natsume, she squealed.

X

"This must be crazy…" Mikan said as she walked towards the escalator of Nakano Mall. "Why didn't you tell me that you migrated here, Kaname-senpai??" Natsume and Ruka just followed behind her, in jealousy. "It's impossible, I'm dreaming!"

Kaname Sono, a high school student, 18 years old and owned a super bishounen look. At the first glance, he is like a superstar. He had a blond hair just like Ruka, but a softer expression. "My family had a business here. Anna and Nonoko helped me quite a lot, Mi-chan. They gave me the address, suggesting that I should pay you a visit. I hesitated because they said you lived in a guy's house…"

Behind their backs, Ruka whispered to Natsume. "They seem pretty close, huh?"

"I don't even want to know about her private life…" Natsume said coolly, keeping a twinge of resentment towards Kaname.

"Eh, Anna and Nonoko?" Mikan asked, "Jeez, I only told Kitsuneme my address. They managed to dig it out…"

"Well, they're pretty good when it comes to secrets…" Kaname gave a small laugh. "So…" He turned to his back, pointing at both Natsume and Ruka. "You said that they are the ones who became friends in the first place?"

Mikan gave a nod, "Yeah. They're really nice." Natsume shuts his eyes and walked faster, followed by Ruka. They headed to the cell phone shop.

"Hey, major idiot!" Natsume called for Mikan. "Do the flirting later, get your stupid phone first…" Everybody stared at Natsume with a sweat drop.

"NAT-SU-ME!!" Mikan's face felt hot because he had just embarrassed her in front of the crowds. "Y-you!!" She rushed towards him and gave him a scolding.

"She's still the same…" Kaname whispered with a sweat drop on his head.

Several hours of arguing, Mikan managed to get a cell phone. With the help of the three bishounen, the price of the latest cell phone model dropped from 70,000 yen to 40,000 yen. (a/n: I know how to convert the currency, so… I'm kind of right.) It's quite useful to have good looks, huh?

"Yay, I could call my friends!" She cheered. The three shounen behind her was aiming to get her number, but, the problem is, how to ask? "Hey, could I know your numbers?" That was easy…

Ruka, Natsume and Kaname took out their cell phones, simultaneously. Kaname, with his boyish charm said, "Switch on the signal. It'll immediately save inside the phone memory…" After doing so, they took a walk at Shinjuku Gyoen Park.

"Hey…" Mikan said aloud. "I'm thinking of working now…"

"Idiot, it's only 10 am…" Natsume replied.

She stretched her arms, "Well… I could save money, right? Oh, Kaname-senpai, I want to show you the best cake shop in this area. It happens to be at my working place. Would you like to have a dessert there?"

Kaname gave a smile, "I'd love to but… I have to go back at my dad's office. He needs my help right now…"

"Ah, yes. You're going to replace the position as a manager soon, right?" Mikan asked. He only gave a nod. "Go on, later we'll have some." Kaname excused himself and walked through the subway tunnel.

"Hm…" Ruka said while he was looking at Kaname leaving. "He seems like a nice man…"

Mikan laughed, "Yeah. He's known as the 'Flawless Boy' in our school. I used to look up to him in every aspect of life."

"It's funny that an idiot like you actually cared about the aspects of life…" Natsume muttered. She stuck out her tongue at him and walked away. "Huh… idiot…"

At that moment, Ruka had just witnessed something that was unusual about Natsume.


	5. The Holiday Week

Yuki: Chapter 5 is here. Excuse if I typed with some errors… Please review, no flames, please.

**Chapter 5: The Holiday Week.**

"And so…" Misaki-sensei gave a short message to his students, "The Holiday Week will be starting tomorrow." Everybody cheered happily. "Right, wait until the next teacher arrives. Don't skip classes, especially you, Natsume." He glared at Natsume, who only ignored him. "I hope those exam marks I gave you aren't that bad." He exited the class.

Mikan looked as if she was haunted by a ghost, while looking at the exam marks she got. It was only 10. "No way!! I've got this… only?!! I've failed!!"

Hotaru moved her eyes on Mikan's exam scores. She sighed, "I knew it… You weren't concentrating on the things I've told you? You're an idiot…"

"Hey, Hotaru! The advice you gave me was last month, how could I remember??" Mikan tried to defend herself. "Besides… the exam was really hard. Who's got the highest marks?" Hotaru flipped her paper to Mikan. It was a perfect 100. "N-no way! Second highest?" Hotaru pointed to Natsume. "Hell no, seriously?!"

"Oi, I'm much smarter than you are, idiot. I've known that you won't do well since you came to my room, telling me to slow down the volume…" Natsume remarked, showing off his 98.

"Hmph, as if you know me that well… 98 is nothing compared to Hotaru, anyway…" Mikan retorted. "Ruka, how much did you get?"

He smiled as he showed her his paper. It was 80. It made her wail in misery, though she's happy for Ruka. "Don't worry, Mikan. My marks aren't that high either."

Crying like waterfall, Mikan looked up to Ruka. "But…I've only got 10... Compared to you, I'm a total idiot!" Hotaru and Natsume nodded. "Hey, that's so mean!! Hotaru, you're my best friend!!"

"Best friend doesn't mean that I have to be nice to you all the time…" Hotaru looked at Ruka. "Hey, Ruka… That picture that I took was a best-seller…"

"H-Hotaru!! Y-you sold that picture?!" Ruka almost shouted. Hotaru nodded, and left the class. He chased her.

Mikan laughed as she witnessed Ruka enraged with Hotaru's addictive hobby: snapping photos of Ruka and selling it to the fan girls. She realized that the so-called President of Natsume Hyuuga's fan club, Sumire Shouda was standing arrogantly in front of her. "Huh?"

"Don't 'huh?' me, Mikan Sakura!" Sumire hollered. "We, as the devoted fan of Natsume Hyuuga, have already decided that--"

"Shut up, Shouda. Go away." Natsume said as he placed his manga back to his table and was glaring at her. "Leave."

Sumire coiled while blushing. "Oh, anything for you, Natsume dearest!" Within seconds, she was gone.

"That was weird…" Mikan, now facing the angered Natsume. "What is her objective? She did that so many times towards me." Natsume looked at her for a while and then gave a leer. He continued reading his manga. "H-hey, what's with that attitude?!"

X

"Ah, so tired…" Mikan slithered from the living room towards the kitchen. "So hungry… I need to eat! Food…"

It was 10 o'clock. Tsubasa heard Mikan's voice coming from downstairs, so, he worriedly zoomed down to have a look at her. This is the first time that she came back home so late. When he reached the dining table, he saw Mikan's face on the plate, flat. "M-Mikan!! A-are you all right?! H-hey, don't scare me!"

Natsume frowned when he heard Tsubasa shouting Mikan's name this loud. _Could it be…?_ He rushed downstairs and saw Mikan was escorted by Tsubasa. "What's going on here?" He noticed that Mikan's face was reddish. He moved forward and touched her forehead. She was having a fever. "Stupid idiot, I told her not to go work today…!"

Tsubasa thought of an idea. "Hey, carry her for a while. Bring her back to her room. I'll call the doctor." He wanted to pass Mikan to Natsume, but he was blushing. "What, you've never carried a girl??"

Feeling anguish over his words, Natsume grabbed Mikan's arm from Tsubasa and carried her in bridal style. Natsume reached her room and opened it. He slowly put her down on the bed and covered her with a blanket. He went to the bathroom and dampened a facial towel to place it on her head. "Idiot… why did you work so hard…? You'll only make people worried about you…" He realised what he had said. "Shit, what am I saying? I'm not worried!"

She was frowning and feeling uncomfortable with the surroundings. Mikan mumbled, "Dad…" He guessed that she was dreaming. Probably a nightmare.

He placed his hand on her left hand. She grabbed it tightly and not wanting to let it go. Natsume blushed red and kept on patting her head. "Damn, where's that freaking Ando!?"

"N-Natsume…?" She tried to open her eyes because she heard his voice. A blurry image of someone was in front of her, calling her name.

He tried to make her open her eyes but could not. "Hey, Mikan… Wake up! Are you all right??"

When she heard her name being called at that time, she managed to see Natsume worrying over her. "Hey… you've just called my name…"

He frowned and shuts his eyes, in arrogance. "No, I didn't say that. Idiot…" Natsume released his hand from hers.

"Hmm…" She said while touching her forehead. "I've got… a fever?"

"Yeah, typical for an idiot like you to be exposed to these things so easily…" Natsume returned back to his seat. "Here, since you've already wakened up, eat this medicine…" He helped her so sit properly and passed her a glass of water and a parasetamol.

She ate it and rested on a pillow while sitting down. "Honestly, this is my second time having a fever. I've never had one before since I was an elementary student. Why does this occur to me?"

"Cause you're skinny and puny sized."

"H-hey! T-that's so mean…" She coughed loudly.

"Oi, stop shouting. You're sick now…" Natsume snapped while he crossed his arms. "Don't expect me to be nice to you."

"You're already being nice…" Mikan smiled while she was snuggling into the sheets. He only frowned at her; she can't help but to laugh a little bit at that time. "You're funny, even though you are mad."

"Right…" Natsume muttered.

Both of them silenced for several minutes. It was Mikan who broke the ice. "Hey…" She said while she was going to stand up, but was blocked by Natsume's hands on her shoulder. "I need to eat… I haven't eaten since this noon…"

"Idiot! No wonder you're sick!" Natsume bellowed at her. She was shocked that he shouted at her this loud. "… I meant…" He placed a hand on his face, covering his expression. "I'll cook for you…"

Mikan blushed slightly when she heard that Natsume was going to cook for her. "Aww, you're being sweet now!"

"Shut up, idiot!" Natsume grunted as he walked towards the door. "Oi, don't try to walk or do anything that's related to walking. Stay put, or else…" With a final deathly glare, he left the room towards the kitchen. Mikan had already found the kind version of Natsume, after living in the same roof for 4 months.

"So…" Tsubasa whispered to Youichi outside of the mansion, holding hands. "Got it?"

"Oh… yeah. I know…" Youichi nodded. "So, you don't want to call the doctor?"

"Jeez, of course not! It's only a fever. A parasetamol would do." Tsubasa smiled. "All right, which ice-cream store do you want to go?"

Youichi pointed to a store. "There, Swenson's ice-cream."

He sweat dropped, "Man. All of my savings for this month will be gone…"

Back to Natsume, he simply made a sashimi. With Mikan's miso soup recipe, he carried the tray along with an orange juice to her room. The excited Mikan was amazed that he could cook that good, after tasting the food.

"Hey, you're really good! Even the miso I made was a replica of mine!"

"Be quiet and eat. I don't want to hear any compliments from an idiot…"

"Hey… That's not a good thing to say to someone who's sick here!!" She yelled, almost got choked with the rice that she had forgotten to chew on. "Cough cough"

He gave a slight patting behind her back to prevent her from choking, "See, what happened to you…"

For no reason whatsoever, she was blushing. _His hands are so warm… and to think that the food was good too. Why my heart's beating fast? And… he had just called my name just now… Oh God, what's wrong with my head?! My face's getting red now…_

"Hello, Earth to the idiot?? Someone's calling you here!" Natsume knocked her head several times. Mikan looked at him and yelled in pain. "Man, your nerve receptors are slow too…"

She buried her face from showing it to him. _No way… I can't be falling for him!!? Think of someone else!! Like who? Uh… Who will it be?? Err… Ruka! Yeah, he'll do. Erase Natsume's image off my mind… erase…_

"I think you're really sick…" Natsume said expressionlessly. "You weren't noisy a while ago. Instead, you're thinking!"

"Yeah, I know. I've been--" She registered what Natsume actually meant and roared, "HEY!! What's that supposed to mean!?"

He smirked and let out a sigh, "Good, this is the real idiot I knew." She blinked and stared at him for a while. "I want to sleep now. Night."

"W-wait!" Mikan held him up by tugging his clothes. "Wait, where's Youichi? C-could I borrow him for a while? I need a companion…"

Natsume turned his head; the body was still facing the door. "Huh? What the heck do you mean?"

"I want to sleep with someone who'll be watching over me. Only for 30 minutes, I promise. I don't feel so safe right now…"

"Why's that?"

"I… I dreamt about my dad…"

"…"

"I dreamt that he was killed by someone… I don't like this nightmare, Natsume. I'm afraid my dad--"

"Youichi hasn't come back yet." Natsume muttered. He remembered seeing her uncomfortable just now. Maybe it was her nightmare.

"Oh… all right." She released his shirt. "Never mind… I'll be all right. Thanks, Natsume for everything."

He looked at her, lying back down and covered herself with blanket. "Hm…" Natsume sat back on a couch next to her. "Only 30 minutes."

She faced him, "Huh? N-no, it's all right. I don't need--"

"Just go to sleep, strawberries…" He said calmly. "Besides, I'm not going to take advantage of an ugly person like you!"

"Ah, whatever!!" She turned around and slept.

He gave a smirk and watched over her. _So far, so good. She might be dreaming something good because she was giggling. Hm, even though she's childish, she still looked so cute… Shoot! Curses, I've just thought of something I that shouldn't!! What's that…?_ He found a book lying on the table. He walked and reached for it. It was the Contact Book. He returned back to the couch and read it. (He doesn't care whether it is private or not.)

_**(Hey, Mikan! - Author: Kokoro Yome.**_

**_It's from all of us in Nagoya High. Remember us forever, in case you're not coming back to Nagoya. This book will be handy for you. All of us patched our arts and doodles here. I heard Tokyo people are quite unfriendly towards us, Nagoyans. So please don't turn into one! Anna and Nonoko often cried every time I mentioned your name. Ahaha, it's hard to control Nonoko, especially. A girlfriend like her is too soft-hearted. Once a guy tried to hit on her, but she was too naïve to see that and accepted his date, can you believe that!?! Anyway, they'll scold me if I talk too much. Go on, each page's written from all of our friends.)_**

Natsume closed back the book. He placed the book next to her pillow. "No wonder you have such high spirit all the time… You have friends with you, meanwhile I only have Ruka."

The next morning, Mikan woke up and stretched her arms. To her right, she saw Natsume lying down on the couch. "He overslept…" Her forehead's temperature turned to normal. "Thanks, Natsume…" She walked from the bed towards him. By placing a blanket on him, she was about to go to the bathroom, but was locked on his face. "I… I didn't know he's that good looking…"

His eyes immediately flicked open. Mikan jumped backwards. "Oh, thanks for appreciating my looks."

Her face reddened like tomato, "I meant, I was… was… the earrings! It looked so good looking!!" She pointed to his ear. _Shoot! He heard it! Oh my God!!!_

"Right…" Natsume grinned, "So, you like me that much? Until you have to say it right in front of me?"

"No, you idiot!" She zoomed towards the bathroom and locked it. "S-shoot, I can't face him like this…!"

Natsume gave a laugh, but not loud. "Jeez, she's really different from the other girls…" He shook his head and walked towards the bathroom's door and knocked it. "Oi, idiot. Don't try to hide your feelings, eh? It's useless since you confessed it already…"

"Jerk, I was not confessing!!"

"Oh, by the way…" He dragged the word and spoke softly, "It's interesting that yesterday you wore cherry prints…"

"Get out, PERVERT!!!!" She shouted, because he was mentioning about her undies.

He grinned and left the room. "Ah… what a refreshing morning…!"

X

The refreshing morning that Natsume mentioned earlier was not really 'refreshing' for Mikan. She knocked her head on the wall while bathing, tripped on the floor, and many more. She walked downstairs with a bad hair day. She let her hair loose, not bothered to comb it after drying her hair. It looked messy.

Hotaru was waiting downstairs while she was talking to Ruka. She heard footsteps coming from the stairs, so she turned back. "Hm… Mikan… your hair…"

"Ah!! I don't care already, he just spoiled my day!!" She tried to hug Hotaru, but she managed to avoid it and ended up hugging…

"Now you're capable of showing affections to public, huh?" Those cold words came from, none other than Natsume Hyuuga. Ruka blushed and looked away.

"Gyaaah!!" She pushed him away, but he didn't budge. "Why am I so unlucky today…?"

"Here, Mikan…" Tsubasa spread his arms for her. "I'm here, aren't I?" Mikan sobbed and plunged into his hands. "Good girl… don't cry!" He felt bad vibes coming from Ruka AND Natsume. "My, my Mikan…" The vibes were getting stronger.

Mikan sobbed on his sweater, "Ne, Tsubasa? I'm sure you knew who Kaname is, right?"

Tsubasa blinked and looked at her, "Eh, yeah. You knew him too?"

Mikan nodded, "Yeah. C-could you do me a favour?"

Natsume's ear twitched when he heard that. "Oh, yeah. Anything for you, kouhai. What is it?"

"I'll be out with Hotaru today, so…" She thought of something and released her arms from Tsubasa's neck. "Hey… I've got a cell phone already! I forgot about that!" She recorded Hotaru and Tsubasa's number inside. "Gomen, Tsubasa. I forgot that I have a phone."

"Nah… It's all right." Tsubasa took off his cap and wore it on Mikan. "There, since you're lazy to comb you hair. Use that instead."

"Ah! Thanks, but are you okay with it?"

"Yup! Go out with Hotaru now, you wouldn't want her to wait…" He said pointing to impatient Hotaru, stamping her feet on the floor.

Mikan grabbed Hotaru's hand and said, "Sorry to keep you waiting! Let's go!" As she was about to pull her hand, Hotaru refused to walk. Mikan turned around, "Huh? Anything's wrong?"

Hotaru pointed to Natsume and Ruka, who were watching the television. "Them too."

Natsume said, "Who wants to go with her?"

"Yeah, we have our own plans…" Ruka pointed out to Hotaru. The reason he was doing this was to prevent Hotaru from taking pictures of him. "Go on."

Hotaru flipped open a picture of Ruka blushing when Mikan was clinging on him and a picture of Natsume staring at Mikan's face when she was sleeping yesterday. Mikan did not managed to see that, but…

"W-When did you--" Both Ruka and Natsume exclaimed.

"Follow or I'll show this to the world…" Hotaru cocked her head towards Mikan. "All right, Ruka? Natsume?"

X

"Hotaru! Let's go to the photo booth!!" She said, pulling her arms towards it. They were hanging out in a mall, which is the biggest in Japan.

She said, "No… I don't want to…"

Mikan pouted, "Aww, come on! It's our first photo shoot together!! It'll be a sweet memory!"

Natsume, on the other hand was devastated that he joined the girls' outing. "Hey, Ruka…"

"Yeah?" He turned his head to Natsume, who was leaning against a pillar.

"I know everything."

"…? Huh?"

"Mikan."

Ruka blushed red. "W-what about her?"

Natsume raised his eyebrows, shocked that his guess about Ruka's feelings to Mikan was this obvious. "Hm… Never mind…" Mikan pulled Natsume's hand all of a sudden. "Hey, ugly. Let me off!"

"Come, come! Let's take a picture!!" Mikan was smiling so happily. "Hey, Ruka. Join us too!!" Ruka only nodded.

"I don't want to be a part of this stupid session, strawberries!" He managed to release his hand from her.

"Please???"

"No!"

"Oh, come on! I may be leaving to Nagoya soon! Who knows when…?" Mikan said clearly. "So… let's make a memory, shall we?"

Ruka was already standing beside Hotaru near the photo booth. "Fine, only because you're leaving…" Natsume tucked his hands inside his pockets and walked next to Mikan towards the booth. They took a fine picture with Mikan standing next to Natsume, who obviously averted his face from facing the camera. Ruka and Hotaru had to duck down a little bit.

"Whoa, this picture's so nice!!" Mikan said as she got a strip of pictures. She handed the other three strips to her friends. "Too bad you're not smiling, Natsume! Your face might look good in here…"

"Whatever…"

Hotaru listened to Mikan's whisper and gave a nod. "All right. We'll be at the cinema. 20 minutes… or else…" Mikan sweat dropped and waved at Hotaru. Ruka gave a questioned look about Mikan. "She's meeting Kaname. She'll need 20 minutes."

Natsume's eye twitched for a bit. He heard the name 'Kaname' coming out from Hotaru's mouth. "Imai, where's she going to meet that idiot?"

"… Ruka, which movie's the best for action genre…?" Hotaru purposely ignored Natsume.

_Damn, that Imai wouldn't tell me either! …Wait a minute! Why am I worrying about her for? She's not important! That annoying girl… jeez, where is she?!_ He shook his head and joined Ruka, who was pointing a billboard to Hotaru. _I hate this year's Holiday Week…_


	6. A Visiting

Yuki: Ah… chapter 6 is here… Aii… Please don't flame… TT.TT

**Chapter 6: A Visiting.**

The last two days of outing with Mikan, Ruka and Hotaru was making Natsume moody until now. He should have let Hotaru to publish that embarrassing photos of him rather than listening to Mikan's overly-high pitched voice, praising Kaname this and that. And especially that muffler!

As he was going downstairs to fetch Youichi from his friend's house but was caught up to see Mikan and Hotaru in the living room. She was still wearing the muffler (scarf) that was given from Kaname! Trying not to be distracted, he reached the main door.

"Hey, Natsume!"

"Look who has gotten out of the room after getting angry for 3 days…" Hotaru said calmly while sipping on her tea. Mikan, as dense as ever, felt confused.

Natsume clenched his fists and felt like punching Hotaru, if she's not Mikan's 'bestest' friend in Tokyo. Mikan said, "Natsume, where are you going?"

"Out."

"Yeah, as in what outing?"

"I'm fetching Youichi from his friend's house…" The main door opened. It was Ruka. He gave a slight nod to Ruka. "What're you doing here?"

"Imai…" Ruka said while he placed a big pile of papers on the table. "I'm helping her on something…" Natsume cocked his head to the left, in question.

"Or else I will sell 'those' pictures…" Hotaru said, emphasizing on the word 'those'. Ruka straightened his shoulders and followed what Hotaru asked him to. He looked like a slave…

Mikan grabbed Natsume's hand. "Hey, hey! Let's go and fetch Youichi together, how's that??" She pulled him outside and was reaching the gates.

He let loose of his hand from her. "Hey, you're getting awfully familiar with me. Stay away!"

"Well, of course! You're my housemate! Come on; don't let Youichi wait for us!"

"Stop it…"

Mikan turned around and looked at him. "H-huh??"

"If you feel sad, stop pretending to be happy."

She backed from Natsume, who was in rage. "I… I… I'm me. I've no idea--"

"Your eyes looked sad, idiot. It will fool everybody but not me." He said pointing to her eyes. "It's different, since we got back from the mall."

She looked away from Natsume. "Kaname… he had just sent me a message from my dad though his dad, if you know what I meant…" Natsume only stared at her, replying as a 'yes'. "Kaname… he said that daddy's going back after working for 2 years there… and, he's not sure when he will be visiting me… or even called me…"

"Idiot…"

"Huh?! What did you--"

"You've sent him e-mails, right?" Natsume said as he was walking out of the garden with Mikan. "At least he replied… unlike my mom who doesn't. It's already enough that he said a 'hello' to you. He's busy at London, what do you expect?"

Mikan was unable to utter a sentence. What he said to her was true, but, what about his mom? "T-thanks, Natsume. Every time I talked to you, I felt refreshed. I'm glad we're friends…" He only scoffed. "B-but, your mom… I'm sure she had her own reasons why--"

"I don't want to know any of it." Natsume rejected her words. "Don't mention… any… single thing… about her…"

Mikan was astonished with his cold words about his mom. She was even more determined to dig out the reason why he was so angry about her. "I'll stay by your side, Natsume. Tell me anything if you have problems…"

X

"Ne, Imai!!" Ruka complained as he buried himself in the papers. He was sick of calculating so much. "Give me a break, will you. My head isn't Natsume's brain…!"

Hotaru kept on calculating and every time she does that, her eyes started to glimmer. "Hm… I've just got a lot of profits! I have to keep up my work…"

Ruka sweat dropped. All those calculating were her profit by using his 'face'. He looked at Hotaru. "Hey, would you mind if I call you Hotaru instead of Imai?"

Tiny specks of red tints were painted on her porcelain cheeks. It was her first time being called by her name, from a guy who has the same age as her. "No… I don't mind… It's only a name…"

He gave a smile, "Yeah, Hotaru sounds more feminine, right?" She blushed redder. "Hey, do you want a drink?"

"Strawberry milk, please…" Hotaru told him.

He thought of her choice of drink while walking towards the kitchen. "Hehe, strawberry milk? That's cute… W-wait! D-did I just said that she's c-cute?!" He messed up his hair, to forget what he had just thought about the blackmailer. The fridge was out of strawberry milk, so, he took strawberries and a whole milk carton out. By cutting small pieces of strawberries and milk into the blender, he turned the power on. "Why am I nice towards her? Yeah, she's my friend… Yup, a friend…"

_That idiot, he's making strawberry milk for me? Just say that you don't have it! Why make those for me? Why…_ She was distracted about his actions. Minutes later, he arrived with a coffee and the strawberry milk she requested earlier. He passed on the cup to her. She accepted it. "You should've told me there wasn't any in the fridge…"

"Oh, never mind. After seeing you working hard, you need to regain strength… even though all of those are my picture's profit…" He sweat dropped. Hotaru blushes to fit right now. "Hey… are you all right?"

BAKA.BAKA.BAKA. She hits his head, using her calculator. (They're not in AA, so she can't invent stuffs like Baka Gun!) "Don't mind me; just do your work…" She said in a calm voice. He rubbed his head and grinned at her.

_She really is an interesting person when I get to know her better…_ Ruka thought as he grabbed a pencil and scribbled it on a debit book.

X

"Hey, Youichi!!!" Mikan screeched again, in Natsume's ear. Youichi ran towards her and hugged her waist, because he's not that tall. "I'm hungry…"

Mikan grabbed his hand and walked together with Natsume. "Okay, I'll cook today. Natsume, tell your chef not to cook today. I'll be replacing him."

"You tell him yourself…" Natsume walked ahead of her pace. "I'm not going to be bothered in this matter…"

"Natsume-niichan," Youichi called for him. Natsume turned his head and asked 'What?' "Don't be mean to Mikan-neechan…"

"That's just great…" Natsume said sarcastically to Mikan. "He'd just called you sister…"

Mikan only smiled, and then she took out her cell phone. It was beeping. "Ara? It's a message…" **From: Anna. Mikan! We're having Holiday Week, right? So, all of us decided to go to Tokyo, for a visit. We're on the way now. See you!!** "E-eeh?!"

"Oi, what's wrong? The message sent an idiotic message again?" Natsume walked towards her. "Oi… idiot!"

"M-my friends!! She looked at him, happily. "They might've reached your house by now!"

X

Ruka stood from the sofa and walked towards the video camera. He clicked on the button and saw the guard on the camera. "What is it?"

"I'm sorry, Master Ruka…" The guard said apologetically. "But… there's a group of students wanting to see Miss Mikan. They said they're from Nagoya… and they're her classmates…"

Ruka sweat dropped, "Uh… I'll check it outside first." He turned off the camera and talked to Hotaru. "Hey, Hotaru… There's a group of students claiming that they're Mikan's friends.

She drank the milk and faced him, "So?"

"Well, they might be impostors. It happened frequently at Hyuuga's mansion, since he's a rich guy."

"Then, we'll ask them questions regarding Mikan. If they got it right, they're really her friends."

"You know that much about Mikan?"

"Yes." Hotaru got to her feet and walked outside with Ruka. She saw about 3-4 people chattering about something. "Hey…"

Kokoro Yome stared at Hotaru's face and said, "You must be Mikan's best friend!"

"How did you know?!" Ruka asked curiously.

"Well, I can tell." Kokoro Yome said. They introduced themselves one by one. "Is Mikan around? We would love to see her."

"Wait…" Hotaru said, "If you're really her friend, what is the proof of it?"

Anna said, "Ano… there's a Contact Book we gave her months ago. I'm sure you knew about it…"

"Hm…" Hotaru nodded. "All right, Mikan's not in right now…" All of them complained.

"But…" Ruka said, in order to calm things down. "Come in. I think Natsume wouldn't mind…"

A voice called from a corner, "I do mind…" It was Natsume. And next to him was Mikan, who was overwhelmed with her friends coming to Tokyo just to see her.

"Y-you guys!" Mikan let her hands off from Youichi. Her eyes was lining in tears. "Koko… Anna… K-Kitsuneme! Nono!" Her friends turned around and stared in disbelief.

"M-Mikan!!" All of them rushed towards her and hugged her.

Kitsuneme placed a hand on her head. "Jeez, you've grown taller a little bit…"

Nonoko cried, "Mi-chan! We've missed you so much! And, hey!" She hits her head, "Why didn't you call me? Only Kokoro, Anna and Kitsuneme got your contact!!"

Mikan gave a wry smile, "I don't want to make you cry. And that's why. Koko said that you've been a cry-baby."

Hotaru returned back to the house to resume her accounts. Ruka and Natsume just stood there, watching Mikan and her friends. "Hey…" The raven haired boy called Ruka.

Ruka only said, "Hm?"

"Should I allow them to stay here?" Natsume asked, pointing to a place where all the bags are dumped near the guard house. "Seems like they haven't found a place to live yet…"

Ruka smiled and said, "Hm, only if you're that kind enough… for Mikan, that is."

Natsume frowned at Ruka. "Watch it… Did Imai influenced you?"

"Nope, Hotaru's only her best fri--"

"Wait a second… 'Hotaru'? You've called her by the name already?" Natsume raised both of his eyebrows in surprise. "That's fast!"

Ruka blushed and coughed slightly, "Well, calling her by the surname is too hard, so…" Before he managed to continue his sentence, Mikan called Natsume and Ruka.

"Hey, Natsume! Ruka!" Mikan called from the left. She was asking them to come over there, and they did. "Look, this is the arrogant boy I told you. He's--"

"Arrogant boy?" Natsume cuts in. "Hey, you're the one staying in my house, watch your mouth…"

Mikan narrowed her eyes on Natsume. He gave a smirk, and she gave up, "Fine… He's the 'Master of House'. And this is… Ruka Nougi. He happened to be the best friend of Natsume. They're really kind, you know."

Anna and Nonoko adored their bishounen looks. "Wah… Tokyo people are different than Nagoya…" Mikan sweat dropped when Kokoro and Kitsuneme glared at them.

"Come in, you guys don't want to stand here…" He turned his back, while walking in with Ruka. "I'll let you all stay here… until you're done with visiting…" Everybody cheered, Mikan tugged Natsume's shirt. "What?"

Mikan whispered, "Thanks, Natsume. I owe you a lot!" He continued walking, after she let him go. "He's…really…."

"Cute?" Nonoko continued her sentence. Mikan blushed red, "Hey… someone had just fallen in love!!" Natsume only shook his head and walked faster. "There's a sign…"

"Mou, Nono-chan!!" Mikan whined, while she was trying to stop from blushing. "Don't even joke about that!"

"Wah… Is it just me or is she redder than usual?" Anna teased. "Kyaa, our Mikan has already got her date!!"

Back to Ruka and Natsume, who already got in the house. "Well, I think Nagoya girls are quite similar to Tokyo girls. Except Mikan, though."

"Whatever…"

X

"M-Mi-chan!!!" Anna squealed while she was pointing to the indoor swimming pool. "H-he owned a swimming pool! This is like… 5 times bigger than your house!!" Mikan sweat dropped.

"Mi-chan!!" Nonoko indicated towards the hallway. "M-my God, is he a Prime Minister's son?!" Mikan sweat dropped again.

"Jesus!" Kitsuneme shouted while pointing to the games inside the drawers back in Natsume's room. "Will you check these out?!!" Kokoro's eyes widened.

Mikan ran into Natsume's room. "H-hey, don't enter without his per--" She saw Natsume, looking at them while he was sitting down on the bed with Youichi, on his lap. "Natsume?"

"What?" Natsume growled.

"You let them in?" Mikan said in disbelief. "Whoa, you're not bad, after all…"

"If that's the only thing you want to say, get out, ugly." Natsume spat.

Kokoro grabbed one of the games and showed it to Mikan. "Hey, Mi-chan!" Mikan looked at him, "Isn't this the game you've trying to find all this while?"

She gaped longingly with her mouth open. "H-hey! Natsume!!" She rushed towards Kokoro and grabbed the game from him. With adoration, she said, "No way, it's right here!"

Natsume was slightly surprised. He didn't expect her to like games like X Box 360. "So? What's the big deal?"

"Cool, I've found this game…" Mikan said, placing back the game inside the drawer. "Hey, mind if I played one?"

"No, I hate things borrowed." Natsume stood up and told Youichi to go down for lunch.

Kitsuneme laughed and shook his head. "Jeez, Mikan. Buy one; you don't need to borrow from him…"

"I'm lazy to go and buy one…" Mikan complained, "How about this, I come and play the game at your place, how's that? I only have Playstation 3…"

"Get out…" Natsume snapped, "Girls out limits…" He pushed Mikan from his room, to prevent any more disruptions.

"Hey…!" Mikan mumbled, "Why aren't girls allowed? It's not a sleepover or anything like that!!"

He knocked her head, "Idiot, you're in a guy's room." Natsume slammed the door shut.

"Geez, he's always like that when it comes to me. He disliked me that much??" Mikan murmured under her breath. When she was heading to the kitchen, she heard sounds coming from there. It was Anna and Nonoko's voice. "Hey girls. What are you doing?"

Nonoko admired the kitchen's interior. "Gosh, it's like what I dreamt. A perfect kitchen for cooking." Both Anna and Mikan sweat dropped.

Mikan thought of Ruka's birthday that will be coming this month. "H-hey… I was thinking…" The three girls discussed about Mikan's idea.


	7. Author's Desperado Note!

This fiction could go on hiatus state…

I myself have no idea what to say. I will be leaving for my medicine training to somewhere far away. The date's like… 14th March 2007.

More like a residential college. But then again… what about this fiction!? Damn it, I can't just leave this on hiatus!

So far, I've written until chapter 13, but it's still ongoing! So… you guys…? What do you think? Give me some suggestions, or...

are you willing to wait for 6 months for my update? (That's nuts!) Darn it… Okay, let's see… 2 semesters…

Each semester they have holidays… So, I might write the ending of this story… how's that?

I would like to receive your comments about my problem here. But don't worry. Until the 14th May, I'll be updating quite fast, okay?

Yours Sincerely, Lina a.k.a Aihara-Yuki.


	8. The Surprise

**Chapter 7: The Surprise.**

Mikan and her two friends decided to make a birthday cake for Ruka's upcoming birthday. They drew a draft on Mikan's laptop on how it should look like. Nonoko Ogasawara is an expert when it comes to cooking; meanwhile Umenomiya Anna is good about mixing chemical items to produce a new scent for the cake. They have been discussing about this secretly, not even telling Kitsuneme or Kokoro. But shockingly, Hotaru is willing to pay the expenses of the cake. That was new…

Anyway, between the boys, Kokoro Yome and Kitsuneme thought it might be good if the boys hang outside in the Zen garden-- the main reason is to relax their mind.

"Is Mikan troublesome for you, Natsume?" Kokoro asked as he was crossing the mini bridge under the koi pond. "She could be hyper at times…"

Natsume silenced only, not wanting to be too friendly with them. Kitsuneme sweat dropped and said, "Well, you could at least give a nod…"

Ruka apologized to them, "Sorry but he's not used to be friendly that fast…"

"This house…" Kokoro said as he surveyed the area, "… Is making you pretty lonely, right?" Natsume finally opened his eyes. "Even though Mikan's family pretty rich, they don't want to make a mansion because they want to be close to each other."

"Hm…" Kitsuneme continued, "We were worried that Mikan might get mistreated here. So, we came over to see how she was doing. Unexpectedly, she was a lot happier than we thought…"

Ruka took interest with the topic, "You mean, happier than she was back in Nagoya?" Kokoro nodded. "She was excited to go back to Nagoya, because she thinks that it's the best place…"

"Maybe she was thinking about us, that's why." Kitsuneme said, "That Mikan, she's always thinking for other people's sake…"

"You're wrong…" Natsume corrected. "She likes Nagoya better…"

The three of them looked at him, "Huh?"

"She wouldn't like it here, since there are people who annoy her a lot… And, the people here are different." Natsume said coolly.

Kokoro smirked, "No… you're wrong. We knew her since kindergarten. I sensed that it's either you or Ruka that makes her to love Tokyo more than Nagoya."

Ruka blushed, "What do you mean? We're not that close to her…" Natsume only folded his arms and glared at him.

Kitsuneme shrugged. "That's how it is… Uh… Wait a second. I've just got a feeling…" He touched his head, "Do you have any special occasion going on this week?"

Natsume gave a nod, pointing to Ruka. "His birthday's coming…"

Both Kokoro and Kitsuneme gloomed in darkness, "Uh oh… He's going to get one… Especially Nono-chan…" They slapped their forehead and mumbled something.

Ruka felt a sudden chill. "H-hey, what's up!?"

"Oh… nothing…" They simultaneously shook their head.

X

"It's great that Hotaru helped us!" Nonoko thanked her.

Hotaru shook her head slightly. "No… It'll be better because there'll be another excuse for me to take pictures of him…"

Mikan sweat dropped. "Hotaru-chan… I can never understand you, sometimes…"

"Spill everything out, Mikan!" Nonoko nudged her. "Natsume or Ruka, which one?"

Mikan blushed, while denying their sayings, "What are you guys saying?! Of course, there's nothing!!" Hotaru, Anna and Nonoko moved closer to her. "H-hey, I swear!!"

"Jeez, I felt he's got something on you, Mi-chan!" Anna pointed out. "His eyes showed it all!" Then, she took a book and knocked her head. "Or, are you too dense to see it through?!!"

Her door suddenly opened, it was Natsume. All the girls backed away, he only frowned. "Oi, your beloved is here…"

Mikan blushed, but angrily pointing at him, "What are you saying?!" Anna and Nonoko were excited. Hotaru taped the moment.

Natsume folded his arms, "Not me, you idiot! Why would I say that?! Your dad's sent you a video. Go downstairs before I burn it…" He eyed on Hotaru, "Off the camcorder, Imai."

Natsume's voice was ringing on her ears. _Did he just said… my dad!!_ She scrambled to her feet and walked towards Natsume. "Thanks for telling me!" She ran downstairs and tripped but she stood up, continued running downstairs. "Idiot…"

"That's sweet." Anna said, "So… do you like her?"

"An idiot like her would be the last person in my list…" Natsume shuts the door and walked away.

Nonoko complained, "Man, he's so cold!"

"He's always like that since I've become his classmate…" Hotaru turned off her video camera and placed it inside her bag. "If I recall… he has been like that since primary…"

Anna sweat dropped, "That's quite long… And, since then, Ruka was his best friend?" Hotaru gave a nod. "Is she used to this place, Hotaru?"

"As long as she smiles, that already showed how happy she is here

X

**Hey, Mi-chan. It's your dad…** Mikan was sitting on the couch after placing the CD inside the DVD player. She watched it anxiously with Ruka and Natsume sitting beside her. **I'm doing fine here in England. It was a dreadful weather these days. There's hardly any sunlight in London… Natsume, your mom's doing just fine. She had been busy nowadays, but it was her job. Don't blame her; she's very devastated when you ignored her a lot. Hey, I missed you, Mi-chan. I hope to see your smile again. It reminds me of your mom as well. Even though your laptop has a web cam, I can't find any time to chat with you. Are you eating well? Sleeping well? How was your exam? Don't tell me you failed again…**

"Well, he's got that one right…" Natsume smirked, while Mikan slapped his back in annoyance.

**Ah****… there's one thing. Natsume, please take care of Mikan. Tsubasa was there to take care, but I feel that you're much suitable. I have no idea why, but. Please keep this promise if there's anything that happens to me. If Ruka's there, how are you doing? Let's keep in touch through e-mails, okay, Mi-chan? Or just send me a recording just like this one. I'll have to go now. Mi-chan, remember that I'm always in your heart. Saramada…**

Mikan was about to cry, but she held it. "Dad…"

Ruka patted her back. "Well, at least we knew that he was all right. He seems to be fine in London…"

Mikan nodded and cried heavily. Natsume just stared at her. Ruka comforted her by patting her back at first, but she cried in his chest, making him blushing red. The raven-haired boy stood up and said, "I'll go outside for a while…"

The blonde replied, "Okay…" He wrapped his arms around her and stroked her head. "Mikan, there's no point crying now. He's doing fine…"

Natsume kept on staring at them as he walked outside of the house. Jealousy?

X

"Master Kaname, you may enter the office right now." The secretary said to the blonde. Kaname nodded and entered his father's office. His father's name is Sono Kazushi.

"Father…" Kaname gave a bow.

"Kaname…" Kazushi welcomed him, with his cold, sarcastic voice. "How are you doing?" He had a black hair, with violet eyes. His skin is too white and it makes him looking like a gothic. (Know who he is?)

"I'm doing fine, father…"

Kazushi's eyes glinted, "So… how was the plan going on? It was Mikan Sakura, Narumi's daughter, right?" The teen gave a nod with a sad expression on his face. "This time, make her yours. And the rest… I told you before, right?"

"Yes, father…" Kaname replied. "Is there anything else besides that, father?"

"No, nothing. You may leave now, son. Keep up the good work." Kazushi picked up the office telephone and dialled a number.

Kaname gave another bow and left the office. He dropped to his knees. It was his father who embezzled Narumi's company. It was his father's fault that Mikan had to suffer from this. It was his fault, Kaname's. He himself was forced to cooperate with his dad, in order to maintain his family's good name. "Mikan… I'm sorry…"

X

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, RUKA!!" It was a surprise party after having it ready for 3 days. He was called to come to Natsume's house as early as 7 am. She was afraid that he might have plans with his own family to celebrate his birthday, but actually, it was his first time to celebrate his birthday with friends. It has always been Natsume or his mother. Ruka's dad was occupied with his work, just like Reiko.

Mikan brought the cake from the kitchen. It was a chocolate mint flavoured cake. Thanks to Anna and Nonoko, that is. "Here, Ruka. Blow the candle. Make a wish, before doing so."

He wished inside his heart and blew the candles. Hotaru snapped a photo: Ruka's birthday moments. "O-oi, Hotaru!! Give me those pictures back!!" He chased Hotaru around the house.

All of them sweat dropped, except Natsume, who placed his hands behind his head. "Ruka…" He called for him. "At least cut the cake first…"

Ruka and Hotaru stopped in unison. He nodded and returned to the table. After slicing the cake, Hotaru snapped a picture again. It made him chase over her again.

Nonoko entered the kitchen and bought another 3 cakes. Everybody sweat dropped, this time, including Natsume. "Ooh, the excitement of baking! It's so addictive…!" Youichi walked downstairs and detected the cake. He swiftly ran towards the table and ate one using his own hands.

"Not again…" Kitsuneme slapped his forehead. "It's always like this. Nonoko won't stop baking until she makes 5 or 6 of it. If Youichi managed to finish it, it might be okay, though."

Mikan shuddered, "N-Nonoko… We can't finish these…"

"No, never mind!!" Nonoko smiled, "You could always eat dessert after meals, right? Treat these as my present for you, Mikan. Your belated birthday! I'm sorry for not calling you these days…"

Mikan sweat dropped, "It's not my birthday now, Nono-chan…" Natsume ignored the conversation and took a slice of cake.

He tasted it first; Nonoko was hoping good remarks from him. Natsume turned his face to Nonoko and gave a nod. "Not bad…"

Nonoko cheered and then all of them started to eat. Kitsuneme asked, "Ne, Mi-chan. I'm sure that Kaname visited you already, right?"

Mikan stopped eating and blushed. Anna noticed it, "Hey, what's up with you?" She shook her head and continued eating. Natsume realised that something was wrong about her. "Woo, don't tell me he confessed??" Youichi stopped eating the cake and stared at his brother's face. It was a curiosity mixed jealousy expression.

Kokoro and Kitsuneme choked on the cake and drank some water. "W-what, he already did??!" Mikan nodded.

"Wah!" Nonoko rooted for Mikan. "Such a bishounen liking you, it's a dream come true!"

"B-but…" Mikan said sadly, "I liked him as a friend… Nothing more and nothing less…"

"Mi-chan," Kokoro asked, "Did you reply him?"

"No…" Mikan answered, "I told him that I will think about it first..."

_I knew this would happen!! Damn, that Kaname! He was up to something since I met him. And now…_ He glanced at Mikan, who was flushing red, not knowing what to say about that. _I wonder what will be her reply… Damn, I'm not falling for her… right?_

Anna and Nonoko paused for a while and took a glimpse on Natsume's angered face. They giggled and said, "Try having him as a boyfriend first. See how it progressed, all right??"

Mikan blushed and gave a nod. _For God's sake, you agreed?!! Is she a total idiot?!!_ Natsume's feeling pretty much tensed right now.

Kitsuneme sensed that Natsume was quite uneasy about this, "Hey, Natsume. Are you angry?"

"Don't be a retard. I'm not, why should I?" Natsume continued to eat his cake. "It's her problem, not mine."

"Correction!" Nonoko pointed out, "It's not a problem, but an advantage! Go on, Mikan. Call him and say you agreed to be his girlfriend!!" The word 'girlfriend' made Natsume's ear twitched.

"W-wait… It's only 7.30 am…" Mikan murmured. "He might be sleeping…"

"Oh, come on!!" Anna persuaded her. "He even called you at 3 am for a chat. You guys are close, it's all right!!"

Anna snuck her hands on Mikan's bag and took out her cell phone. "Let me help you…" She searched for Kaname's number and pressed 'Call'. Mikan panicked as she received the phone from Anna.

"A-Anna!!" Mikan was holding the phone. It was ringing and somebody picked it up. It was Kaname. "K-Kaname… I-it's me… M-Mikan…"

Kaname got out from his bed and sat up. "Mi-chan… Of course I know that's you. Your voice's easy to remember."

"Em, I… I was thinking about… what you told me days ago…" Mikan hesitated. Everybody was thrilled to expect her to say 'Yes' except Natsume, who just ignored her.

Kaname said, "Yeah… I was pretty disturbed myself when I confessed to you. Mi-chan… what's your answer?

X

Sono Kaname turned off his cell phone and laid on his bed. "That's cute…"

X

"Congratulations! You're now officially Kaname's girlfriend!!" Anna, Nonoko, Koko and Kitsu cheered. The noise made Ruka and Hotaru to stop chasing. They stared in their eyes and turned to look at Natsume. He was disturbed, all right. He stormed into the kitchen to wash his plate and went straight to his room.

"Natsume…" Mikan whispered to herself when her friends are busy celebrating. She looked at Youichi, who was in a blank look. "Youichi…" _What did I do wrong? Does he… Ah! Impossible!!_

Hotaru went to Mikan and asked what happened. After the explanation, Hotaru grabbed her bag and hit her.

BAKA.BAKA.BAKA

"H-Hotaru-chan!!!" Mikan cried with her bump on her head. "What was that for??!"

"It's for being such an idiot and a naïve person." Hotaru took a slice of cake and ate it.

Ruka heard about the conversation. Honestly, he was sad but not that sad. If it were Hotaru, he might be angrier… _W-What am I thinking about? I think I'm sick or something like that after hanging out with Hotaru…_

"Why is Natsume so angry all of a sudden…?" Mikan said to herself when everybody went outside. "Is he worried about me…?"

X

He took off his jacket and threw it on his chair. He rested on the bed, with a palm covering his eyes. "Am I that… jealous over Kaname? What happened to me…?" Natsume shook his head to forget those things but the part where Mikan agreed to become his girlfriend made him…perplexed?.

A knock was heard from his door. _Who's that? Disturbing me when I was all depressed… Jeez!_ He turned the doorknob and said, "Polka dots… What are you doing here…?"

She was startled when she heard that his voice sounded… sad. "N-Natsume…" Mikan stared at him. "Is there anything wrong? You seemed kind of sad…"

"I'm fine, idiot. Don't talk to me right now. I need a peace of mind."

"But--"

"I said…" He said, stressing each word. "I'm. Fine."

Mikan wore the same worried look, "Natsume…" She nodded and turned around. "Tell me if there's anything wrong…"

He grabbed her wrist. "W-wait…" She stopped walking and turned around. He pulled her towards him; she accidentally tripped and accidentally fell on him. And… they accidentally… kissed.


	9. The Jinx

Yuki: Uploaded 2 stories at one time 'cause I have no time… '''

**Chapter 8: The Jinx. **

The First Kiss between them was recorded by Hotaru's spy camera, by accident. She was hoping to record something else, but this recording is… priceless.

In Mikan's room, Anna and Nonoko were envious about her. Nonoko started first, "You were accepted to become Kaname's girlfriend and at the same time, received your First Kiss from Natsume. Oh, what a conflict!" She cupped her own cheeks and shuddered. "This exciting love triangle!!"

Anna watched back the tape from Hotaru. After Mikan and Natsume stayed in that position for about 10 seconds, she pulled herself from him. Within a flash, she ran off from Natsume's room. The lucky guy shrugged and entered back in his room. "Wahahaha, both of you are so funny!!"

Mikan tried to throw the tape away but failed, because Hotaru had many copies of it. "It's not a kiss!! Our teeth clashed, that's all!! Hey!! Stop laughing, Nonoko!!" Mikan was blushing redder than usual.

"Oh, I thank Kokoro for suggesting to visit to Tokyo. We wouldn't have got the chance to see this!!" Anna squealed in excitement. "But, when these things occur… Mikan… You might face a problem."

Mikan stopped from blushing and looked serious. "H-huh?"

"It's a jinx. It rarely happens to people, but since you've just experienced that…"

"What? Experience what??" Mikan asked.

"Accepted as Kaname's girlfriend and received your First Kiss from Natsume. It's a jinx." Nonoko added. "It'll be quite bad, you see…" She took out her special made Tarot cards. It's different from any ordinary ones. "Would you like to see the future?"

Mikan nodded. Hotaru decided to sleep because she doesn't believe in fortune-telling. Mikan picked a card when Nonoko told her to. "Here, this is the card…"

Both Anna and Nonoko's eyes widen when they received the card form Mikan. It was… Despair and Sorrow.

X

The next day, Mikan's friends decided to go back to Nagoya, since the Holidays are over. They hugged each other and see them off after talking for an hour in the train station.

Ruka said to Natsume, "Hey… I've heard about your First Kiss…"

"I don't want to talk about it." Natsume snapped. Ruka only followed.

Mikan thought back about the Tarot cards Nonoko predicted. It was scary that she got that fate. Mikan tried to think positive, but since that jinx happened, her only choice is to see what will happen next. "Hey…"

"Huh?" Ruka and Natsume turned around.

"I'll… go back alone." Mikan said, "I want to walk around… alone."

Ruka nodded and pulled Natsume away from her. "What are you doing?" Natsume said, "She'll be lost. You don't want that to happen again, right?"

His best friend said, "Never mind. She'll find a way, somehow."

Mikan wandered around, not knowing where she was heading. Her heart felt so heavy suddenly. She was not able to stand properly, until she bumped into someone. It was Kaname. "K-Kaname… S-sorry…"

He looked worried about Mikan, because she looked unwell and sad. "H-hey…" Kaname grabbed her hand. It was very cold. "Hey, Mi-chan… are you all right?"

She shook her head. "I don't feel good today. I have no idea why… I'm worried about my dad…"

Kaname's face changed. He muted for a while, looking down at the pavement. His grip on Mikan tightened. "…M-Mikan…"

She gave a smile to him, a weak smile. His heart aches when he saw that. "Yeah? Kaname, what's… wrong?"

He smiled back and denied, "No, I'm okay. I'm worried about you, that's all… You're my girlfriend, right?" She blushed and remembered that they were officially girlfriend-boyfriend.

X

"Don't worry, she'll be all right…" Ruka said, while he was inside Natsume's room. Youichi was having a nap.

"Did I even say that I was worried?" Natsume spat out.

"You looked worried, Natsume. It's obvious that you fell for her!"

"Don't be an idiot. I knew that you do, though…" He opened the lid of a cup and drank the coffee.

"What? Me?" Ruka pointed to himself. Then, he laughed. "Right, I did. It was a long time ago."

Natsume's eyes widen. "So… who do you like right now?"

Ruka shook his head, "I doubt if I do like her. Hotaru seemed--" He stopped in mid air. He had just mentioned the name. Ruka looked at Natsume's shocked face.

Natsume almost dropped his cup. "I-Imai?!"

Ruka folded his arms and looked through the window. His eyes flicked open when he saw something outside. "Looks like you don't need to worry about her since Kaname sent her back home…" Natsume looked towards the window too. Ruka sensed that he was very agitated.

X

Mikan said, "Thanks for sending me off…" Kaname stared at her a while, with a regret drawn on his face. "Kaname… Is there anything wrong?"

"No… I'm just…" Kaname stopped in mid air. "Mind if I hug you?"

She blushed. "Em… I guess not…" Right after she said that, Kaname pulled her into an embrace. He wrapped his arms around her waist. She flushed red, when he did that. "Kaname…"

"I'm sorry…" He whispered. Mikan asked why. "No… never mind me…" He let her off and said, "Get well soon. Let's go out sometime, all right?" She nodded. "See you."

She watched as he left the area. "Kaname… Why can't you tell me what's on your mind…?"

Natsume leaned on a wall, watching her. "Oi, strawberries. Such a memorable hug, huh?"

She blushed, "Hey, don't interfere with my personal stuffs!"

"I wasn't interfering. It happened right in front of my eyes. I can't help but to watch…" Natsume shrugged.

"Jeez, are you jealous??" Mikan teased him, "Because you don't have any girlfriend to share your problems with?"

"I already have someone in my mind." Natsume continued, "To share my problems with."

Mikan was surprised that he actually replied her question. "Eh? Really, who is that lucky girl?"

Natsume grabbed her pony tail and dragged her in the house. "Stop blabbering, get inside…"

"N-Natsume!! My h-hair!! Stop pulling it as if it's a toy!!" Mikan demanded, while she was trying to release his hands from her hair.

Ruka came down to see what happened, "N-Natsume! My goodness, what are you doing to her?"

"She was flirting with someone in the gardens. My garden is not the place for those things…" Natsume released her hair.

Mikan sobbed, "Jeez! I guess that lucky girl of yours will change her mind after seeing what you did to me! I hate you, Natsume!" She ran outside through the back door.

"That…" Ruka said, "Was really mean. Don't you think you went too far, Natsume?"

Natsume folded his arms and slumped on the couch. "Whatever…" He closed his eyes to relax his mind. _I guess I over-did it this time. But…_ He flashed back where Kaname was hugging Mikan. Kaname was smirking when he saw Natsume staring at them. _That brat, he knew it already… _When he opened his eyes, he imagined Mikan's smile inside his mind. _She's dense…_

X

Mikan was troubled with the actions she did to him. _I've just said something that I shouldn't… He's the reason that I can live in this house, but… He's acting like a jerk! Why can't he be nice to me? Nonoko, Anna, Hotaru were treated nicely, well… except for Shouda. What's his main reason to hurt my feelings…?_

Someone grabbed her shoulders. It was Ruka and next to him was Hotaru. "Hey…" The violet eyes stared at Mikan's. "You're such a cry baby…" Mikan hugged Hotaru tightly. "D-don't choke m-me, you idiot!!" She hits her head. "Ah, that's much better…" Ruka sweat dropped.

"I wonder how you two could be best friends…" Ruka walked towards the door of the Glass House. "I'll leave you two to talk. See you." He exited the house.

"Did Ruka called you here?"

"Yeah, he text messaged me about you and Natsume." Hotaru sat beside her, observing the plants. "Mikan, are you stupid?"

Mikan fumed up, "Hotaru! How could you--"

"Can't you see through what Natsume meant earlier??"

"Huh?"

"I tell you… He loves you."

"Uh… So? I love everybody. I love you too, Hotaru. I love my dad…"

Hotaru massaged her forehead. _Mikan's a dumb head. I think she really need to read those shoujo manga novels…_ "Mikan, I have no idea on how to continue this conversation but, the decision is in your head."

"Oh, all right." Mikan cheered up. She was happy enough that her best friend is here to comfort her. "I was disturbed by Nonoko's prediction, Hotaru. Despair and Sorrow. It's really scary…"

"Don't be an idiot." Hotaru knocked her head. "It's only some stupid fortune-telling!"

"But, I sensed that something may go haywire later…"

Hotaru stared at her, "If you think so, it will happen."

"Maybe… I've been dreaming a lot of nightmares regarding my dad, lately. It's all so scary…"

"You've got the CD from your dad, right?" Hotaru asked. Mikan nodded. "Then, I think he's doing fine. Reiko-san's bodyguards are there. There won't be anything that could happen…"

"But…" Mikan said. "And there's something wrong with Kaname."

"Oh, your boyfriend?" Mikan blushed.

"Yeah…" She cupped her cheeks to cover her blush, "He seemed pretty sad over something too. I wonder what it is…"

"You're his girlfriend, right?" Hotaru said, "You should ask him…"

"Yeah, I did. But he said it's nothing…" Mikan said worriedly.

Hotaru nudged her, "Hey, I heard you two hugged…" She nodded slowly. "Oh, that's good! I guess there'll be more of it… I'll record for you, how's that?"

"Hey, stop teasing me!" Mikan said angrily, but still reddening.

X

Youichi went outside, to get a mail from the postman. After signing it, he received a mini parcel. He walked upstairs and handed it to his brother, Natsume.

"Huh?" He stopped from writing on a book. "A parcel?"

"It's for Natsume-niichan and Mikan-neechan." Youichi said, after reading the letter from the postman. "I think Natsume-niichan should look at this first…" Youichi handed the parcel to him.

Natsume tore out the wrapping paper and opened the box. There was a letter. He read it on.

**To: Natsume, Mikan and Youichi.**

**I'm Reiko's secretary, Yuu Tobita. I'm writing this letter to you because I have a sad news to deliver. Narumi Sakura and Reiko Hyuuga were shot when they were on the way back to the hotel yesterday. Their conditions are stable, except Narumi. He was shot twice from his back. Please, come to London as soon as possible. School's is not important right now. Reiko needs to see all of you. She has a favour to ask.**

**From: Yuu Tobita.**

"Shoot…" Natsume tightened his grip on the paper. In the parcel, he took out 3 airplane tickets to London by this week. "Youichi, we'll be going to London…"

"Huh?" Youichi looked at him, "For a holiday?"

"No…" Natsume said, "For a task…"

X

"D-dad!?" Mikan shouted, as she slammed on the table in the living room. "H-he's shot?!!"

Natsume nodded and handed the letter to her. She read on and cried, "Oi, stop crying already…"

She crumpled the paper, "I… I knew it… These things will happen eventually… Right, Hotaru?? Nonoko's predictions came true!!"

Hotaru was unable to speak. Ruka interrupted, "So, when are you guys leaving to London?"

Natsume diverted his eyes to Mikan. "I don't care when but it's up to her…"

"Today! Now!" Mikan stood up. "Pack your things! We'll go to London today!!"

Natsume winced, "Are you crazy?! It's 11 pm right now!!"

"B-but, dad!!" Mikan slammed the table again. "I… I must see him right now!!"

Ruka patted Natsume's shoulder, "Natsume, just go. Hotaru and I will look around the house… I'll inform Tsubasa."

Natsume looked at him and sighed. "All right. Hey, ugly. Pack up now within 10 minutes."

Mikan's cell phone rang. She picked it up, "Hello… oh, Kaname-chan…"

_K-Kaname… chan?!!_ Natsume thought. _Jeez, why am I so angry about? _

"Em, yeah…" Mikan scratched her head. "I've got to go to London. Yeah… E-eeh?! You're going too?!!?"

Kaname sighed, "Yeah. I want to accompany you. All right? I'll get the tickets ready."

Mikan smiled, "Thanks… you're sweet." She turned off the phone. "Well, I think he'll be taking a different plane but the same departing time. Kaname's coming."

Hotaru narrowed her eyes. _Following her to London? Sweet, but suspicious. Why would he do that?_

Youichi said, "Natsume-niichan, I'll go pack my things." Natsume nodded.

Mikan and Natsume walked upstairs together, leaving Ruka and Hotaru at the living room. Seconds later, Tsubasa entered the house, and Ruka told him everything.

"Eh? Narumi-san and Reiko-san was shot?!" Tsubasa widened his eyes. "They're not politicians, why would anyone do that for?!"

Hotaru thought for a while. "Maybe… do they have a painful past? If so, someone might have a grudge on him…"

The three of them thought of the possibilities that night. About 12 am, Tsubasa drove them to the airport. They were walking inside the airport and Natsume went to the counter to verify the air tickets. Minutes later, Kaname arrived with his driver next to him. Mikan detected him and walked towards Kaname.

"Hey, Kaname-chan." Mikan tip-toed at him. "Are you all right?"

Kaname snapped out of his mind and smiled, "Yeah, I'm all right. I've got enough rest back at home. Thanks to you."

Mikan was relieved that Kaname turned back to normal self. "Here," She grabbed his hand and walked him towards a near seat. "Sit down for a while, okay?"

He blushed when his hand was seized by Mikan. "Uh… okay. Thanks, Mi-chan."

From a far corner, Natsume was staring at both of them. He formed his hand into a fist. Tsubasa noticed it, and smirked. "Oi, Natsume?" The black-haired boy turned to him. "Jealous?"

"Idiot fool…" Natsume returned to face the airport staff and asked about their seats.

Kaname looked at Mikan, "Hey, is your father all right? He's not in a serious condition, is he?"

Mikan's eyes lined in tears. "He's was shot twice at his back. I hope he's all right though... I felt that something bad will happen to him, and it did! K-Kaname… I'm scared if my dad…" He pulled her into his chest and allowed her to cry. "Dad… oh, daddy!" Kaname patted her back and felt bad to what happened to Narumi.

Hotaru emotionlessly recorded the sad moment. Ruka only stared at them, feeling bad for Natsume, who arrived towards them with the tickets on his hand. Natsume sat down next to Ruka. "Hey, are you all right?"

"Of course I am." Natsume spontaneously replied. "We'll have to wait another 20 minutes till the airplane arrives from London…"

Ruka nodded. He looked back to Kaname and Mikan. "Don't you think they look more like siblings instead of lovers?"

"Why would I care about that?" He placed his hands behind his head and shuts his eyes. "Wake me up when the airplane arrives."

"Okay." The blonde shifted his eyes to Hotaru, who was thrilled with her works. "Hotaru, leave them privately…"

"It's my job to record things which are interesting." She replied. "Are you angry that I've finally found something that's much interesting than you?"

Ruka blushed, "No way. I'm not!!"

Hotaru smirked and moved the camcorder to his face, "Ruka's blushing red…"

He pushed the camcorder from his face, "Hey, stop doing that!!" Then, Hotaru walked away with the camcorder. "W-wait! Erase that part! Hotaru!!!"

Mikan rubbed her eyes and stopped crying. Kaname said, "You know, a smile's better on your face."

"R-really?" She stared at him.

He nodded. "Yeah… I remembered when we first met in Nagoya. You handed your hand first. It was sweet; nobody dared to do that to me."

"Oh yeah… I've never met any of your parents, Kaname." Mikan said. "Yeah, if I remembered clearly, you said that your mom passed away and your dad was busy with his works, right?"

"Uh… yeah." Kaname was fiddling with his fingers. "I've never had any childhood memories with them, though. It was blurry and I heard a woman's voice calling my name. I have no idea who it was, but… her voice's so… warm… and lovely."

Mikan smiled, "I guess it might be your mom."

"M-my mom?"

"Yeah! Just like my mom, except that she died giving birth to me…" She lowered her head. "At least she called your name. And you should always remember that voice, because it's the evidence that she is protecting you, always. If you feel sad or anything related to darkness, you should think that your mom's always beside you, Kaname."

Kaname smiled. _I guess, having her as my girlfriend is the right choice._


	10. Surprised?

Yuki: Uh… kinda early but… I'm in serious desperate measures! Omg… it's 5.45 am already?!!! (posts new chapters and started brushing her teeth.)

**Chapter 9****: Surprised?**

It was shocking, though. Kaname's flight was in the same one as Mikan and Natsume. The worse part is, Natsume's seat was behind Mikan and Kaname's. Yeah, Mikan and her boyfriend are sitting together near the window panel. Youichi was asleep, sitting next to Natsume.

While Mikan was laughing happily with Kaname, it bugged Natsume's nap. He pulled her pony tail. Mikan was shouting in pain, while Kaname was furious with his actions. "Hey, let Mikan off."

Natsume glared at him, "She was making noise. I've warned her a lot."

Kaname understood what Natsume's true intentions. He smiled, "Is that so? Then…" He removed Natsume's hand from her hair. "I'm warning you not to touch my Mikan." She blushed, hearing what Kaname had just said.

Natsume's right eye twitched, after hearing what he said. He glowered at Kaname and laid his head back to his seat. He saw Kaname worrying about her condition. Mikan said she was all right. "Hmph…" A vein popped on his head. The long suffering flight has finally reached United Kingdom. Mikan was amazed because it was her first trip to Europe. She went to the United States, Argentina, China but never in Europe. Natsume snatched her hand from Kaname. "You'll be coming with me."

Kaname frowned and sighed in defeat. "Well, Mi-chan? I'll call you, okay? You'll have to stick with him now. So, see you!"

Mikan whined, "No, don't leave me with this monster!!" Kaname sweat dropped and bid his farewell as a limousine was waiting for him.

Natsume grinned, "Oh, you're calling me a monster after having your First Kiss with me? What belligerence…" Mikan blushed red and denied that their 'kiss' was a kiss. (Huh?)

Youichi said, "Natsume-niichan… I'm hungry…" He touched his stomach. "I want Mc Donalds…"

Mikan sweat dropped, her hand was still on his grip. "Ne, You-chan. If you're hungry, you should take a proper meal."

A stranger called, "Yeah, what Sakura-san said was true. You need a proper diet for your growth…" Natsume turned his head to the voice's direction. "I believe that you've received my letter, Natsume-san."

"Are you…" He tried to remember the name. "Yuu Tobita?"

The stranger took out his sunglasses and revealed his face. _G-God, he's only a teenager!!_ Mikan pointed rudely to Yuu, "D-Don't tell me you're still a teenager?!! And you worked for Reiko-san!?"

Yuu nodded. "Yes, I'm a child prodigy. I've graduated from Oxford University last 2 years. I'm doing my PhD in medicine while working with Reiko-san. I'm here to help your days in London."

Natsume glared and ironically mocked, "A genius who works for my mom? That's funny…"

Mikan did not understand what PhD things as well as Oxford University. "Huh? I don't understand…"

Yuu smiled as he grabbed Youichi's hand. To Natsume's surprise, Youichi was comfortable with him. "Now, I'll take you to the hotel first…"

"N-no!" Mikan shouted, her hands were tied on Natsume. "I… I want to see dad! I meant, Narumi-san."

Yuu shook his head. "I'm sorry but he needs to rest after the operation. I believe you could meet him after 2 days."

"N-no way! I have to--" Natsume shuts her up by covering his hand on her mouth.

"Hey, strawberries…" He stared at her, "Don't make things hard for your dad. He's all right now. So, if you don't want to be a trouble to your dad, listen to what Yuu's got to say for now."

Her eyes widened and nodded. He released his hand from her mouth. Yuu and Youichi stared at them and laughed. "What's so funny?"

Youichi spoke, "Natsume-niichan and Mikan-neechan act like husband and wife…" He said pointing to Natsume's hand, which was still holding on Mikan's. "There… it's a proof…"

He immediately released her hand. "She might get lost, that's why. You two, stop laughing already! It's not funny." Mikan only blushed in embarrassment. "Yuu, lead the way." Natsume folded his arms and walked towards a 5-star hotel.

Yuu suddenly stopped when they took a step in the hotel. He suddenly slapped his forehead. "Jesus, I've just forgotten that thing!"

"W-what is it, Yuu?" Mikan asked worriedly. "Is it important??"

He turned to Youichi and sighed. "Yeah… About the room…"

"If you're saying that it's full… I'm going back to Japan…" Natsume snapped. Yuu sweat dropped.

"N-no, it's not that…" He smiled inwardly. "As you can see, Reiko-san told me to book a Presidential Suite. But there's only one suite, so…" He eyed from Youichi, Mikan and to Natsume. "I suppose, it'll be all right if the three of you share a room, can it?"

X

"N-NO WAY!!" She shouted out loud, when Natsume opened the suite. It was huge, almost like a condominium itself. "Y-Yuu!!! I… I don't want to share the room!!!"

"I'm sorry, but Reiko-san told me to. The bodyguards could guard you from outside. If you three separate, there might be a chance that you'll end up like your dad, Sakura-san…" When he said that, Mikan only stared at him. "Yeah, it will happen."

"I-is that so…" Mikan made a way for the bellboy to put their luggage inside the room. "A-all right…"

Yuu clasped his hands, "Thank you for your cooperation, Sakura-san."

"Hey, Yuu. Don't call me Sakura-san. Just call my name. It's weird having to be called Sakura-san since our age's the same…"

Yuu nodded. "Ah, I'll have to go and see Reiko-san now. I'll call you if there's anything wrong, okay?" He closed the door and left the hotel.

She walked in a zigzag and slumped herself on the bed. "I'm so tired… It must've been 8 am in Japan… I haven't got any sleep…"

Natsume came out from the bathroom to check on things. "Oi, you'll be sleeping on the floor, all right?"

"Ehh?! Why?!"

"There's only a bed, you idiot!" Youichi bounced on the bed.

Mikan straightened herself. She looked around. There's no other bed besides this king-sized one. "H-hey! You should treat a girl well, not for your own good!!"

"Oh, so now you call yourself a girl…?" He teased.

"Y-you!!" She gritted her teeth.

Youichi dialled the phone and said, "_Yes, I want a dessert too. How about Chocolate Delight? Make that three_…"

Mikan gaped and was pointing at Youichi, "H-he can t-talk E-English?!"

Natsume grinned, "Yeah, he excelled in English. You can't even speak one? How're you going to survive here?"

Mikan pouted, "Natsume, you're really weird… One minute you're kind, and another minute you're mean." She sat on the chair and said, "I wonder how dad is…"

"He'll be all right, how many times should I repeat…?" Natsume said. "Yuu will inform us about their condition, so chill out…" He grabbed the phone from Youichi and asked, "Hey, strawberries. Do you want to eat here or outside?"

"…" Mikan thought. "I guess it'll be fine if we eat here…" Natsume threw the Menu to her. "Huh?"

"What do you want to eat?" Natsume asked again. Mikan smiled and ordered the foods.

Minutes later, the excited child ran towards the door and opened it after hearing a doorbell. Natsume signed on the receipt and closed back the door. He stared as those two gobbled up the food as if they have never eaten before.

"Jeez, you're a girl. Eat like one, will you??" Natsume sat on the dining table and took his plate.

Mikan grunted, "I'm hungry too! Ah, you have prawns!!" She pointed to Natsume's plate. "Hey, Natsume!! May I have one?"

"It's lobster, you idiot!" Natsume snapped. Mikan begged one from him, in exchange of her dessert. "Fine, have it…" He passed the lobster on her plate.

"Oh, gee! You're the best!" She ate it, happily.

Natsume ate slowly, while looking at Mikan. _I can't help it, but… I really like her so much…_ He was disturbed when Youichi was sneering at him. "W-what are you looking at, You-chan?!"

"Nothing…" Youichi averted his glare. "It's a rare smile I've seen from your face…"

"Nonsense, I was not--" Mikan suddenly appeared behind him, staring at his face. "W-what are you doing!?"

"He said you smiled!!" Mikan gaped at him, "Really, I can't imagine you smiling!!! What happened?! Oh, you were thinking of the girl you liked, huh??" She nudged him.

"Go and finish your food!" Natsume scolded. Mikan retreated from him and returned back to her chair. "Youichi, it's not good to stare at people when he or she's eating…"

"B-but…" Youichi pointed at Mikan, who was eating. "You were staring at Mikan-neechan…"

He winced, "No, I was not! Don't get those silly assumptions!" Youichi smirked.

X

Even though Mikan does not score well in English examination papers, she could understand the jokes in the television. She was laughing hard with Youichi on her lap while pointing to the screen. Natsume could not understand how she managed to laugh even though the jokes are not funny at all.

"I'll go take a bath…" Natsume said, while he was calling for Youichi. "Hey, You-chan. Do you want to get on the bath too?" Youichi stood up and nodded. He walked towards him. "Oi, don't try to enter the bathroom, all right?"

"Jeez, as if I would do those immoral acts!!!" Mikan yelled. He smirked and entered the bathroom with Youichi. Minutes later, Mikan suddenly needs to use the toilet. She stood up and knocked the door. "N-Natsume… It's urgent! I need to use the toilet!!"

He called from inside, "I've just got in. Too bad…"

"Hey!!" She knocked the door, banging it hard, "I-It's a nature's call!! N-Natsume!!!!"

The door opened abruptly. It was Youichi, in a child's bathrobe opening the door. Natsume only wrapped a towel around his waist with his wet hair. (Looks like he just got out of the bathtub. Try imagining him in that state… drools Oops! Sorry!) Mikan covered her eyes from seeing him in that state. "Idiot… Quickly finish your business with!" He got out from the bathroom with Youichi and sat on the chair, waiting for her to finish with her 'nature's call'.

The bathroom door opened, the very relieved Mikan came out and thanked him, "Natsume, thanks for letting me. I was about to die just then!"

Natsume told Youichi to get first. "I'll have to open it, or else you would smash the door…" Mikan blushed and immediately covered her eyes, realizing that he was in towels.

"Go and bath now! You're half naked!!"

"Whose fault is that?!!"

"Get in the tub, you… you pervert!!" She heard footsteps fading away. It meant that Natsume already went inside the tub. She peeked from her fingers, "Phew… That was close…" She sat back at her chair, facing the television. _Just then, why was my heart beating fast? M-maybe he's in that state, that's why… Huh, I thought I was falling for him suddenly. GAAH!! What am I thinking?! It's a sin to even think about that!_

After all of them had taken their baths, the main problem is…

"No, you sleep on the floor!!" Mikan pointed to Natsume, who was already under the covers with Youichi. "H-hey! Come on, Natsume!!"

"Nope…" Natsume said, while he shuts his eyes. "I'm not used to sleep on the cold, hard floor…"

"W-well, it's not a floor! It has carpet and it's soft…"

"Then you sleep there!"

"Fine!!" Mikan finally gave up. She grabbed the blanket and a pillow. She placed it on the floor, shut the lights off and drifted to sleep.

Youichi nudged closer to Natsume. "Natsume-niichan, don't be mean to Mikan-neechan…"

"Don't worry. You'll see…" Natsume smirked. After an hour or two, he woke up and walked towards Mikan. He tried to wake her up, but she won't open her eyes. So, he slowly carried her, in bridal style, towards the bed and placed her there. He covered the blanket and sat on the chair. He slept while watching them sleeping soundly.

The next morning, Mikan woke up first. Shocked to see that Youichi was next to her, she sat up straight to see where Natsume is. He was next to her, sleeping on the table. She was touched that he decided to give in. But one thing slips in her mind. _How did I get in here?! D-did he just… gulp carried me?!_

"Oi, don't get the wrong idea…" Natsume flipped his eyes open and yawned. "You were complaining in your sleep, about the hard floor and all!" Of course, he lied.

"I-I don't sleep talk!!" Mikan shouted back. The noise made Youichi woke up in a start. "S-sorry, You-chan!"

He rubbed on his eye. "There's something in my eye…" Mikan wanted to take action but Natsume was faster. He jumped on the bed and checked his eye.

"Come, I'll wash it for you…" The eyes from Natsume were different. Mikan noticed that he turned softer when it comes to Youichi.

_I guess… he really loved his younger brother so much. Well, since their mother was busy 24/7, they tend to get closer. __But…_ She watched as Natsume carried Youichi near the basin to wash the infected eye. _He really is different… right now. Why can't he be much kinder to me this way? On second thought… No… He's much better in a scary mode._

"Thanks, Natsume-niichan…" Youichi said. "I want to take shower…" Natsume nodded and left him.

"Natsume?" Mikan asked.

"What?" His usual eyes came back.

"You're really kind back there…" Mikan said. "I guess your main weakness is Youichi, am I right?"

He stared at her and sat on the study table. "I'll have to tell you something about Youichi…"

"Huh?" She sat down on the study chair, at his left. "What about him?"

"Youichi, he's not my real brother."

Mikan's eyes widened. "W-what did you just said?!"

"He's actually my mom's friend's son. She died when the baby was born. My mom was her best friend, so she decided to take care of him. Unknowingly, he became the part of the Hyuuga family."

"D-does Youichi knew about his past?"

He shook his head in denial. "No, I'm afraid to tell him. My mom said it's much better not to tell him. He might get hurt." He clenched his fist. "It's my first time having someone near by my side all this while… 7 years ago, I was alone all by myself. Ruka was there for me, but, I can't help being lonely at home…" He paused and decided not to continue his story.

"Natsume…" Mikan placed a hand on his arm. "I have no idea that you're that lonely…"

He realised that she was about to cry, so, he said, "Well, having you in my house is like a toy. An interesting toy to play with. So, you'll be useful when it comes to teasing."

"W-why you!!!" She stood up and mumbled. "But…" Her facial expression changed. "But, if I'm a toy to cheer you up… I wouldn't mind at all… Seeing you with a happy face is worth of being a 'toy'."

Natsume blushed and faced away from her. "Stop saying those sappy lines!"

Her cheeks grew hot when she realised that he was blushing. "H-hey, you're blushing!!"

"N-no, I'm not!!" Natsume avoided her. "Oh, Youichi?" The boy came out after having a bath. "You, strawberries!" He said pointing to the bathroom. "You go in first. I don't want an idiot banging the door like last time!" Mikan grumbled and went inside. He thought, _that was so close!! I was about to express my true colours just now. That was dangerous… _

X

The three of them decided to go for a walk, with Yuu Tobita. Mikan received a call from Kaname, saying that he might not accompany her today because of his works in the company. The relieved teenager, Natsume, walked inside the mall, namely Harrods.

Youichi surveyed the Children's area; he was hoping to buy some toys. He was practically running here and there, searching. Mikan was panting for breath, after attempting to stop him. "It's no use…" Natsume told her. "He'll get excited when it comes to this place…"

"R-really??" Mikan drank the water bottle. Right now, Yuu was trying to stop Youichi. "Look! Hehe, he's going to get one too!"

Natsume stood beside her and watched Mikan's expression at the corner of his eye. _That smile… It warms me up…_

Mikan and Natsume were walking around the department until she saw someone coming using the escalator. She gasped, "K-Kaname!"

The blonde widened his eyes and was shocked that she was here with Natsume. And next to Kaname was his dad, Sono Kazushi, who was talking to a business man behind them. When his father heard his son's name being called, he looked to the front. "Is that Mikan Sakura?"

Kaname shuddered when he heard his dad's voice asking about Mikan. He nodded and walked towards Mikan. "H-hey, Mi-chan…"

Mikan waved at him and pulled Natsume forward. "Morning, Kaname-chan. Is this your father?"

The blonde introduced his father. "It's my dad, Kazushi…" Mikan bowed to him, Natsume only gave a nod, while staring at Kaname, who was nervous about something.

Kazushi eyed at Mikan's face and said to Kaname, "Come, our partner's waiting…" He walked first, leaving Kaname.

Mikan touched Kaname's hand. "Kaname… Kaname-chan? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine." He said, "Yeah, sorry about not accompanying you today… I'll make it up to you."

"Oh, never mind me. Your role in your company is much more important than me." She waved at him, as Kaname rejoined his father. "That's the first time meeting his dad…"

"First time?" Natsume asked. "Your father didn't know who Kaname is?"

"My dad? No, he only knew that Kaname's my senior."

Natsume tucks in his hands inside his pocket. "Let's go and see what Youichi's doing…"

"All right!" Mikan smiled at him.

Back to Kazushi and his son, he said, "She looked just like Yuka…"

Kaname nodded and said, "Dad… do we have to do this?"

"Of course…" Kazushi smirks. "I'll have to see what will happen next…"

Kaname silently followed his dad and whispered to himself, _I'm so sorry, Mikan…_


	11. Guard

**Chapter 10: Guard**

Ruka and Hotaru were doted to check on the premise of Hyuuga's mansion. So, they take turns on checking the house.

"Ruka…" Hotaru instructed, "What are you doing with my camera?!"

"I'm going to dispense this one…" Ruka smirked. "The photos you sold were too much! I can't stand it!!!"

"Don't be stupid!" Hotaru said angrily.

Tsubasa grabbed the camera from Ruka and gave it to Hotaru. "Ruka, it's not good to bully girls…"

"It's more like she's doing most of the bullying!!" Ruka pointed to Hotaru. "I'm warning you, if you pull that stunt--" Hotaru snapped the photo.

"Ruka enraged… 300 yen…" She smiled and ran away from him, making him to chase her everywhere in the house.

Tsubasa shook his head. "They're so childish…"

X

Shielded with black umbrellas, the four of them walked towards the hospital under the rain. Mikan started to miss her hometown, Japan more and more. Yuu pressed '9' when they got inside the elevator. When they reached the floor, she rushed and opened the door. Narumi was on his bed, resting meanwhile Reiko's bed was next to his. She was sleeping soundly.

"D-dad!!" Mikan gasped, Narumi opened his eyes. He opened his arms for her. "D-daddy!"

She hugged him tight and he said, "M-Mikan… D-don't hug me that tight… I've just had my operation…." Suddenly, she cried. "Oh, Mi-chan…" He patted on her head. "Don't be like this…"

"I was scared to death!! I don't want to lose you after letting off mom… Daddy!"

Natsume walked towards his mother and sat next to her, while grabbing her hand. Reiko woke up in a start when she felt the warm hands on hers. "N-Natsume…" Youichi touched her cheeks and smiled, "Y-Youichi…"

"Don't talk, mom. It'll make your condition worse…" Natsume said, with a worried expression. "And…" He paused for a while. "Sorry… if I made you angry and hurt… I don't mean it--" He was interrupted when Reiko hugged Natsume by his neck. He blushed, because it was his first time being hugged by his mom. Mikan and Narumi only watched, in surprise.

"I should be sorry, Natsume…" She sobbed. Her tears made his shoulder wet. "And…" She let him off. "You too, Youichi… I'm sorry for leaving you alone with your brother…"

Youichi shook his head, "No, mommy… It's okay…"

Natsume teased, "Oi, ugly. Stop staring at me… even though you're behind me."

"W-who would want to look at you, pervert!!" Mikan sulked and asked her father, "Daddy… Who did this…?"

Narumi shook his head. "I have no idea. I don't remember having any enemies…"

Reiko sat up, "The target is you, Narumi. You've got 2 shots… And, maybe…" She paused and allowed Yuu to continue.

"Maybe the next target is Mikan…" He said with a nod.

Mikan pointed to herself in disbelief, "M-me?!"

Reiko and Yuu nodded. Natsume turned his head to Mikan, seeing her in a shock state. "I know you're shocked but, you have to be really careful even with your own friends. Maybe they're hired to become--"

"N-no! My friends wouldn't do that to me!" She interrupted Yuu's sentence.

Yuu adjusted his glasses and looked seriously at her, "This is Tokyo, anything's possible! Your father was shot twice, Mikan Sakura. Look at his condition! He could barely walk properly--" Narumi silenced him by placing a finger on his own lips.

Mikan's eyes widened, "D-dad?" She looked at him intently, "Y-you can't walk…?"

"No, what he meant was, I'll be using wheelchair for about 6 months or so. Ahaha, don't worry much about that. I'll be much better soon." Narumi patted her head, Mikan hugged him tight.

Reiko gazed at Youichi's face and touched it. "I think… your life might be in danger. So, I will be hiring bodyguards for you…"

"B-bodyguards?!" Mikan screeched, "M-my God, I don't need them!"

Narumi stroked her hair and said, "I don't want you to have the same condition as I do. Mi-chan, for your own good, please."

She stared at her father's worried expression. "B-but, I don't like to be surrounded with bodyguards… Is it full time?"

Reiko thought for a second and smirked, "Oh yes… Even when you go to the toilet… Tsubasa will have to go back to Hokkaido since his work here is done."

Mikan, Natsume, Yuu and Youichi flinched. All of them said, "Even the toilet??"

Reiko nodded. Narumi too, smiling devilishly,

Mikan gaped at Reiko. "R-Reiko-san… I don't think that is necessary…"

Smiling at Mikan, she said, "However, I would not like to employ some stranger as your bodyguard…"

Natsume felt uneasy when his mother said that while grinning at him. "Then what do you want??"

Reiko said, "Natsume and Hotaru shall be your bodyguard. I've talked to your best friend yesterday. She accepted if I pay her 30 pounds per month. Neat, huh?" Mikan's hair ripped one by one.

The auburn haired girl said, "T-they're not even professionals! They'll get themselves killed!!"

"No, what I meant was… Natsume and Hotaru will be your bodyguard in the house. Did I tell you that Natsume's the national champion for martial arts defence and Hotaru's the champion in kendo? They also undergo a special mission for the government's." Mikan gaped at Reiko with a blank look, not knowing their extra curricular activities was like that. "The other bodyguards will be guarding around the house. Well, you know what I meant…."

She scratched her head, "I roughly got what you meant, I guess…"

Natsume spat, "Mom, what are you trying to do? Making me even stupider with her around?!"

"I'm your mother. I knew what you really want, Natsume."

Natsume silenced and stared at her, longingly. "Whatever…" He rolled his eyes to Mikan. "Don't get excited, idiot!"

"Heck no! Why would I be excited!?" Mikan shouted at his ears. He plugged it with his I-pod and ignored her blabbering.

Yuu smiled and said, "Mikan, it's advisable for you to leave for Tokyo this Saturday, all right?"

"Em, okay…" Mikan nodded to Yuu, and glared back at Natsume.

Reiko said, "Youichi will be studying here for a while. He had just entered the exchange student programme in the UK. So…."

"Eh?!" Mikan said, aloud. "You-chan will be studying here??"

Reiko nodded and said, "He'll be staying here about a year or three… Mikan, I hope you wouldn't get too lonely back in Tokyo… And keep this confidential, all right? Only Ruka, Hotaru and Tsubasa knew these stuffs."

_Crap, I'll be with Natsume in the house!! Alone!_ Mikan artificially smiled to Reiko. "Ehehe… yeah. I'm all right, I guess…"

The doctor came in the room and asked the visitors to leave because they have to make a check-up.

_What was mother doing? Playing a fool with me or what? Being together in such a big mansion with…_ He looked at Mikan who was hugging Youichi tight and saying that she will miss him. _Being alone with that idiot… Shoot, what a dire luck!_

"Natsume…" Yuu called him. "Here, it's the tickets back to Japan. Do you mind packing the baggage for Youichi? Just drop it off at the receptionist counter. He'll be taken care of with his foster parents…"

Natsume accepted the tickets and called, "Ugly, let's go. We have to do some stuffs…"

Mikan jolted, "No, I want to say good bye to You-chan!!"

He grabbed her right hand and dragged her out of the hospital, leaving Yuu with Youichi. "Idiot, we have to help packing things for Youichi!"

"B-but!" He pushed her inside the limousine and told the driver to send him back to the hotel.

"I'll keep the tickets…" Natsume placed the tickets inside his pocket. "3 more days and we're leaving…"

As they reached the hotel, Natsume was busy packing the things meanwhile Mikan checked around the house to see whether are there any other missing items.

"I'm going to miss him…" Mikan said with her teary eyes.

He knocked her head, "Stop crying, idiot! It's not a funeral ceremony!"

"B-but, I really--"

"You really think that you're the only one missing him?" He finally looked at her in the eye.

She stopped from attempting to cry and shook her head. "S-sorry, Natsume. I'm always like this every time a parting happens…"

He threw a pillow at her face, she growled. "Heh, it's really funny to see you crying. It really doesn't suit your character…"

She blinked at him and then to the pillow he just threw. _Is he… trying to cheer me up? Natsume…_

Natsume went outside to leave Youichi's bags at the counter for the moment. Mikan was relaxing near the veranda, seeing the buildings that she had never seen in Japan. Her cell phone rang. It was Kaname.

"Hey, Mi-chan. How was your father? Is he doing well?"

"Oh, Kaname-chan! Yes, he's doing fine for now…"

"W-what's wrong? Did something…" He sounded worried.

"Em, no. Never mind me…" Mikan tried to act normal.

"Even though you're trying to be cheerful, there's a sad tone coming from you." Kaname said softly. "Well, spill it."

"He may be needing the wheel chair for a few months… The assassinator aimed his spine… which…" Mikan felt like not continuing the conversation. "But, there's something weird going on…"

"Huh? What's is it?" Kaname asked. 

"It's weird, but Reiko-san--" Her phone was snatched by someone from her back. She turned around to see Natsume was holding it. "N-Natsume! What are you--"

"Oi, Kaname. She's busy right now. Don't call her today." He closed the phone and yelled, "You idiot! Didn't you hear what Reiko told you? These things are confidential, and nobody should know it!"

"Kaname is not a 'nobody'!" Mikan placed her hands on her hips. "Why are you so touchy whenever I talked to Kaname?! It's not like he did anything to you!"

"I'm not touchy, idiot!" Natsume placed the phone on the table, in front of her. _I'm jealous…_

Mikan gave him a menacing glare and stormed to the fridge and took out a snack. She ate it greedily, while watching the television. She was agitated, all right.

Natsume watched her eating in a gluttonous way. He smirked at first, but the look at her face was too funny. He placed his hand on his lips. "Heh…" Natsume faced to the veranda and laughed, "Ahahaha…" He was shaking his head while laughing.

The obviously shocked sixteen stopped eating at once and sped towards him. "N-Natsume!! Y-you're laughing!!!" For 3 seconds, she saw his true face. A smiling face. _H-he's attractive when he's laughing… I didn't know that he could be this… pleasant looking compared to Kaname…_

But, after the three seconds, he returned normal. That was quick! "Stop drooling at the look at my face, idiot. It's not a good sight for a girl to drool…"

"I-I w-wasn't drooling! Jeez!!" Mikan said, forgetting that she was angry with him minutes ago. "Hey, Natsume?"

"What?" He was not looking at her.

"Next time, smile one for me when I'm leaving for Nagoya soon, okay? The smile you had was… warm and fuzzy."

"I won't…" Natsume said. _Because you might forget me…_

"Hey, what's with that attitude!!?" Mikan yelled.

Later that night, she was fighting with him again about giving her another chance to sleep on the bed.

"Come on, Natsume! I'm a girl!" Mikan argued. "Have you seen a girl sleeping on the floor?"

"If you consider yourself as Japanese, I'm sure you have experienced one with futon…" He stared at her in the eye, making her to understand what he was saying. "Buzz off, I want to sleep now." He was under the covers meanwhile Mikan was on it, begging him to give her a chance.

"Oh, come on!!" Mikan fights back.

Natsume spread open the blanket. "What, you want to sleep with me, is it?"

She blushed, "No, you pervert jerk!! What I meant was--"

"There's no point, strawberries. It'll be raining tonight, so it's up to you." Natsume turned his back from her and slept.

She pouted and got off from the bed. Mikan took out a blanket from the cupboard and sat on the chair, facing the window. She covered herself and shivered because the temperature of the room was cold, even though she turned on the heater.

Natsume sensed that she was practically suffering in the cold. He sat upright and called, "Idiot, come inside here. I won't touch you or anything like that! You'll be frozen to death!"

"N-no, I c-can stand this t-temperature…" She tried to close her eyes.

He shook his head, "You're making things difficult with me, you know that??" Natsume stood up and walked towards her. He grabbed her icy hand. "Idiot strawberries…" He carried her towards the place, in bridal style.

"P-put me down, y-you p-pervert!!" Mikan stuttered while blushing red.

He threw her at the left hand side of the bed and covered her with the blanket. "Shut up, idiot girl." Natsume walked towards the kettle and poured hot water inside a cup. He handed it to her. "Drink it while it's still hot…"

She took it and drank the water. It warmed her up. Mikan peeked to look at Natsume. His eyes… it turned _soft_. She felt that he was shivering as well. The heater was not enough to warm up the room. "Hey, you're cold too…"

"So, what? I have to bear it…" He folded his arms and closed his eyes.

"W-wait…" She called for him. He opened his eyes. "I have an idea…"

"What is it?" Natsume snapped.

"I'll put a bowl of water between us. Let's promise not to be too close to each other, or else the water will spill. And the person, who got wet due to the water, is the culprit." Mikan said.

"Are you sure? You don't want to get problems with the guy you kissed before, you know." He teased.

"T-that was not a kiss, y-you pervert! Who asked you to pull my hand anyway!?" She said angrily.

"Whatever…" He walked to the right hand side and laid himself there. "Place the bowl…"

Mikan poured water into the bowl and placed it between them. "Hey, this is a good idea! Next time, I could sleep on the bed!"

"Don't be an idiot. What if you're the one spilling the water?"

"I won't!!" She said. "Now, good night!!"

After sleeping for only 10 minutes, Mikan could not continue to sleep. She was worried that she might be the one taking advantage on him. Suddenly, Natsume called, "Hey, you couldn't sleep either? You're mumbling. I can hear you well…"

"W-well, m-maybe I could sleep after thinking for a minute!!" Mikan said.

"Aww, don't tell me you're shy…?" Natsume teased.

"Jeez, I'm not!!" Mikan blushed. He turned around and faced her. "Hey, you turn back!!"

"Why?" Natsume said. "Turning left and right is normal for sleeping…"

"You're not sleeping now!!"

"Then you turn here. You can't sleep, right?" Natsume said. "Talk if you want to."

Mikan hesitated but she turned back. "Well?"

"What?"

"You asked me to turn!!"

"Jeez, you actually followed what I'd to say? You're really an idiot…"

"Don't call me an idiot! I don't like to be called like that!"

Natsume reached his fingers on her head and hits it. "I call whoever whatever I like to. Go to sleep, your eyes are red." He turned back.

Mikan stuck out her tongue. But, she felt a weird sensation looking at his back. She felt like touching it. Mikan sat up and gasped. _I… I didn't know that I was the pervert! N-no way, this is crazy!!_

"Oi! Sleep now! I want to wake up early!!"

"Fine!!" Mikan replied rudely. She went inside the covers and slept. She really did managed to get a sleep.

About 5 am, Natsume woke up. He was used to get up early without any alarm clocks. He looked at his left and saw the bowl. It was not spilled yet. He stared at her face and smirked.

He took the bowl and spilled it at her place and making it as if she was the one spilling it. Afterwards, he resumed to sleep to see how Mikan would react when she wakes up an hour later.

And the next day, she screamed.


	12. Japan, my Home

**Chapter 11: Japan, my home.**

Mikan pointed to the bowl which was drenching her clothes. _Kami-sama, d-don't tell me that I've tried to take advantage on N-Natsume?!!!_

Startled with her shriek, he woke up and saw her staring at the empty bowl. He smirked and said, "Looks like you were the culprit after all."

"I… I don't remember doing t-that!!" Mikan wailed in horror.

He shrugged and walked towards the bathroom. "Oi, you're the pervert right now. So, if you don't mind, I would like to take a bath in peace."

"Go on, you jerk!!" Mikan said pointing to him. "Who would want to peek?!!" Natsume grinned and entered the room. She thought over, _what did I tried to do with Natsume? D-did I try to hug him?! O-or d-did I tried to… N-no way!! There must've been a mistake! I don't remember any of these!!!_

Mikan was disrupted with a door knock. She reached out for it and saw Kaname, standing in front of her "K-Kaname!"

He smiled and was surprised that she was in a messy state. He chuckled and said, "It's already 11 am, Mikan. You haven't taken your bath yet?"

She blushed in embarrassment. "S-sorry!! I overslept because I--"

"She was busy looking at someone's body while sleeping." A voice continued her unwanted sentence. Mikan turned to her back and found Natsume in towels. She shrieked and covered her eyes.

Kaname was shocked to hear the words from Natsume. He turned to Mikan. "R-really? Y-you and him…?"

Mikan aggressively shook her head in denial. "N-no!! It was not like what you think it was!!! He tricked me!" Natsume wandered off, leaving for the bathroom. "H-hey you! Come back here and make a--" He turned his back and gave her the 'What?' look. She accidentally saw his chest and hid behind Kaname. "K-Kaname… help me!!"

Kaname sweat dropped and entered the room. They talked about what really happened that night. Kaname ended up laughing after she explained it. "Mi-chan… It's normal for a girl to get anxious when a guy was sleeping next to you."

"B-but, I spilled the water!!" She wailed.

Kaname smiled, "Don't worry. I don't think you did any of those things. Maybe, you kicked it accidentally?"

Mikan nodded, "Kaname, you're the best! You always know how to calm things down!"

"Hehe, thanks Mi-chan…" Kaname flashed a smile. "Oh, Natsume's done with his bath. Why don't you take yours now? I would like to invite you for a breakfast, seeing that you haven't had one."

Mikan's spirit cheered up because of Kaname's smile She stood up and took a leave to the bathroom; meanwhile Natsume just came out from the room. "I'll get my hands on you later, you… pervert!"

Natsume smirked, "I thought you already got your hands on me while sleeping? You were the one spilling the water from the bowl…"

Mikan mumbled and dashed into the toilet, leaving Natsume and Kaname in the living room. "Did I really spill that water?!"

Natsume passed by in front of Kaname, who gave a nod, to wish him good morning. "A really noisy morning for you?"

"That's what you'll get by spending a week in a room with an idiot." Natsume sat down in front of him, folding his arms. "What do you want with that ugly girl?"

Kaname chuckled, "That's not a good thing to say about her, Natsume. I'm thinking of bringing her for a breakfast and a walk. I've been so busy in my dad's company. And today's the best day to spend time with her."

"I'll follow."

Kaname sweat dropped. "But it's a date…"

"So?" Natsume stared at him with his cold eyes.

He shrugged, "Well, all right then. You could follow us…"

"Good." Natsume leaned himself on his chair. _I can't just say that I'm her body guard! _

X

In the hospital, Reiko was eating her breakfast next to Narumi's bed. "Hey, do you think that plan might work?"

"We'll see what might happen." Narumi said, after taking a sip of medicine. "Bleargh, this medicine might kill me rather than a gun shot!"

She laughed and said, "Do you remember when the four of us gathered underneath the cherry tree every spring?"

"Four of us…?" Narumi paused from eating bread.

"Naru-kun? You didn't remember?" Reiko stared at him. "You, Yuka, me and Persona…"

"P-Persona…" Narumi stuttered. "I still have no idea on what's his real name was…"

"Me too…" Reiko looked down to her hands. "It was a tragic, yes?"

Narumi nodded. "I'm glad that it was over…"

X

"And, Mango Parfait!" Mikan ordered from the menu. The waitress bowed and left. "Ah… Such a lovely morning!!"

Natsume just stared in the window, ignoring those 'lovebirds' talking. He felt down when he received a call from Yuu saying that Youichi had already left to other town with his foster parents. He might feel lonely, because his only brother would not be there for him.

"Hey…" Mikan said while waving a hand to his face. "Natsume-kun…"

He was startled when he heard the '-kun' at the end of his name. "Don't disturb me, idiot."

Kaname pointed to his food placed on the table, "It's your food."

Natsume glanced for a minute on the food and started to eat. "…"

Mikan and Kaname's food was served, but she does not really have the appetite after seeing Natsume acting pretty cold today in the morning. She paused to think for a while. _W-was he thinking about the bowl incident?! D-did I do something that offended him last night!? W-what did I do?!!_

Kaname understood what she was thinking and grinned. "Hey, Natsume. Why're looking so down all of a sudden?"

"Don't ask me anything right now." Natsume said impassively.

"Natsume-kun…" Mikan whimpered as she stared at his long face.

After the breakfast, they took a walk at the Hyde Park. Natsume had been 'mute' for 3 hours already. Mikan felt uneasy with his new attitude. She was used to shout at him loudly but now, he does not have the mood to even look at her face. Kaname excused himself because he received a call from his father to work on something.

She tapped his shoulder, "Hey, Natsume!! Talk to me, will you?! It's so unusual for you to keep quiet!!"

He finally took a look at her face and grinned, "Oh, you missed me that much?"

She widened her eyes, "Y-you purposely did that?! Jerk, I was so worried whether I offended you or something like that, and to think that Youichi was not here made me think that you were thinking of him! Idiot! When you silenced for about 3 hours, I've started to think I did something offensive last night because I spilled the water--"

She was cut in by a kiss from Natsume. It started when he grabbed her hand and pulling him towards her. Releasing his hand from her after pulling, he stroked her head, pulling into a kiss. She was too petrified and was unable to think properly that he was kissing her in public! He broke the kiss and walked ahead. It lasted about 15 seconds.

"N-N-Natsume!!!!" She blushed red, so red that her head was spinning fast. "J-jerk, what was that for!!!!!??" Everybody was looking at her and started to giggle. She ran towards him and hits his back, "N-Natsume!!"

"What do you think it was for?" Natsume turned to look at her red face. "You look like a tomato…" He poked her cheek, which made her blush even more. "Really, you love me that much?"

"What are you talking about!!!!!?" Mikan screamed, "I'm not a toy, Natsume! You can't simply kiss me like it's no big deal!!"

"I didn't say that, right?" He looked to the front.

Her eyes started to water. "I…idiot…." She wiped her eyes, Natsume had just realised that he made her cry. "Why can't you stop bullying me… as if I'm really like a piece of junk…?"

He paused for a while and handed his muffler to her. "Wipe your eyes, idiot… Besides, I didn't really treat you like a junk… You are really dense, aren't you? You can't even see what I've done for you?"

Mikan paused from crying and looked at him. She received the muffler from him, Natsume himself! She could smell his scent from the muffler. "W-what do you m-mean by that…?" He sighed and gave the most unusual smile to her.

He placed his hand on her head and whispered, "Sorry… Mikan."

By that time, her heart thumped so wildly that she almost forgot to breathe. _Why does it feel… weird when every time Natsume calls my name? Not really often but…_ She placed her right hand on her chest. _It feels heavy now… Why am I blushing…?_

"Oi, idiot!" He called from 10 steps ahead of her. "If you're spacing out, I'm going to leave you here…" _Why did I kiss her? Right in front of the public?! That was not myself a while ago… _

Mikan reached for Natsume and walked side-by-side with him. _It's strange… The more he makes me angry, the more I feel that I get to know Natsume better and better. It gets smooth every time we argued. Mom, why am I feeling comfortable with Natsume? But I really despise Natsume for kissing me the second time!!!! _

X

After giving the tickets to the officer, the both of them got into a private jet plane. It was especially for them, because Reiko requested so. Kaname will be arriving to Tokyo about a month later.

"Wah!!" She squealed when she had her hands full on tarts. "Oh boy, this tastes great!!"

Natsume took off his headphones and muttered, "Ei, eat with your voice low. I can't even listen to my mp3!"

Yes, Natsume and Mikan were sitting side-by-side. "Natsume!!" She moved her hand with an Apple Tart towards his face. "Hey, taste this one! It's really good! I remembered dad used to bake one of these when I was a small kid back then."

While feeling embarrassed with Mikan's action, he pushed her hand away from him and said, "I'm not interested with these things!"

She ate the tart that she offered him. "Jeez, you're so fussy with food!" When her eyes met his, she blushed all of a sudden. She had just remembered the kiss. And because of that, she ordered more tarts to succumb that particular memory.

Natsume smirked, "Hey, you're reddening again."

"I'm not, you pervert!" She denied. "I… I added make-up today!" She tried defending herself, but…

He touched her cheek where the blush was. Then, he looked at his hand. "Nope, that's not make-up, strawberries…"

"I had a really bad luck today, Natsume!! And it all was caused by you!!" She said pointing to him

He shrugged. "Which one? The last night event was your fault." Natsume stared at her blushing face.

"I'm always stuck with this pervert!!" She wailed. "The girl that you loved wouldn't like to see you doing this to me, Natsume! Remember that!"

"Oh, I'm sure she likes it…" Natsume stood up and walked towards the toilet.

Mikan's eyes followed him as he went to the toilet. "Is he nuts?! What kind of a girl would like it?!"

X

"H-Hotaru!!" She called from 100 metres away from Hotaru and Ruka. They were hanging out in the garden while reading books. "I missed you so very extremely much!!"

Hotaru only stared at her and hits her head using a book. BAKA!!!!

"Hotaru-chan!!" She cried as she touched her head, "Why did you hit me so much??"

She pointed to her head. "I've seen your stupid ness crawling on your head."

"Ruka." Natsume called for him. The blonde smiled in return. "Oi, stupid girl. Get in and put your baggage into your place."

Mikan grumbled and went inside the house alone. Hotaru faced Natsume and said, "I'll be the bodyguard only at school. I have no time guarding the idiot at her house… I have my work to do at home…"

"You could stay at Natsume's house…" Ruka suggested. "Since Reiko-san asked your help, I bet the rent will be free…"

Natsume slightly nodded, "Just do whatever you think it's right."

Hotaru smirked and said, "I'll be moving here then. Until Mikan gets to go back to Nagoya with her dad."

"Fine, whatever…" Natsume walked back inside the house.

Ruka stared at Hotaru, "Did I just see Natsume being offended by what you've said earlier?"

"Yes… Something amazing had just happened in London…" Hotaru's eyes glinted mischievously.

X

"W-WHAT?!!" Hotaru shouted. This was unexpected… Hotaru used to be calm and unemotional but when Mikan told her about the incident in London, the whole story made her shout. "Mikan, you really are stupid… I can't believe my best friend is you…"

She lined her forefingers, "How could you say that to me, Hotaru??" They were hanging out at the swimming pool area. Indoors, of course. Hotaru does not like to get tanned.

"I should make a machine that enables you to think properly…" Hotaru eyes were staring at her face.

Mikan said, "B-but… the feelings I had for Natsume was weird… My heart beats faster when I looked at his face…"

Hotaru stood up and threw a shoujo manga to her. "Read this, I think it'll make you realise what you are facing now…"

She picked it up and read the title, "Yamato Nadeshiko Shichi Henge manga? For what?" (Sorry, I liked that manga so much!)

Hotaru grabbed her bag and threw it on a table. "Read all of these volumes. Call me after you read everything!" She turned and left the place.

Mikan opened the first page and started to read. Ruka who happened to pass by at that area called, "Hey, Mikan. What's up?"

She showed him the manga. "Hotaru asked me to read this book… But it's pretty interesting!"

He laughed and sat beside her, "I can't believe that Hotaru reads manga…" He checked on the other volumes. "I guess I know what she really wants you to do…"

"Really?! What is it then?" Mikan asked.

"Sorry, but you'd to find it by yourself. Hotaru might sell the rarest photographs of me if I'd to tell you." Ruka said with a sweat drop. "Mikan, I'll have to go now. See you at school tomorrow."

Mikan waved at Ruka and resumed to read the manga until volume 3.

X

"Mi-chan!" Otonashi called for her. "Come here for a while!" Mikan pointed to herself. "Well, yeah! Who else would have the same name as you?"

She walked towards Otonashi and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Here!" She handed her a card with a pamphlet. "It's an invitation to Sumire's birthday party. She was absent today, so, I'm handing it over to you. And…" She took out a mechanical pencil and handed it to her. "Present for you. Just a small gesture from me."

"Oh, gee! Thanks!!" Mikan accepted the present. "Otonashi, I'm sorry I have nothing to give one…"

She smiled, "No, never mind. That's all I wanted to say…"

Mikan got back to her place and kept the pencil inside her pencil box. "Hey…" She called to Hotaru. "I've read until the third volume!"

"Good…" Hotaru managed to say. "Keep it up…"

Mikan moved to the back and showed the pamphlet to Natsume and Ruka. "Hey, you guys! Do you want to go there or not?"

Natsume ignored what she was saying and continued reading his manga, but Ruka said, "Oh, I don't really fancy these party things…"

"B-but, it'll be great if we could go, right??" Mikan said. "August is coming soon… Time flies so fast, isn't it?"

"Yeah…" Ruka agreed, "Heh, autumn is coming soon… And we'll be seniors next year…"

"Wah! Seniors! I haven't thought of that yet!" Her eyes sparkled. "Oh, by the way…" She said pointing to the pamphlet. "I would like to experience some birthday party!"

"Mi-chan, you haven't gone to any of those yet?" Otonashi overheard the conversation. Mikan shook her head. "Oh, then you should go. Sumire's father's pretty rich, but not as rich as Natsume's mom, though…" She continued, "I'll be going there. Would you?"

X


	13. Sumire's Awe

Yuki: Err... Haiz... I hope it's all right for you. I have been quite a busy teenager... Quizzes on each topic every week, projects to hand up, some oral presentation and etc... I could go cuckoo. So, if you think this chapter sucks, I'm sorry. Kinda stuck with the plot, maybe...

**Chapter 12: Sumire's Awe.**

"Natsumeeee!!" Mikan called from downstairs. She was wearing normal blouse with pink pleated miniskirt. Her hair was tied up in a bum with sakura hair clips. With a bracelet as an accessory, she was ready to go to the party and she was thinking of presenting her a bead necklace.

"Why am I involved in this…?" Ruka asked. He was wearing normal sleeveless top and long khaki pants.

Natsume walked downstairs with his black turtleneck sweater and long black pants. "You don't have to shout in this house, idiot!" He was kind of angry because he doesn't want to attend this party. Ever since Natsume and Hotaru were appointed to become Mikan's bodyguard, they have no choice but to follow Mikan.

Mikan's heart beat was getting faster when she saw his outfit. It looked cool on him. "Wah, Natsume! You looked so handsome!"

He blushed red and was getting furious, "Oi, stop complimenting me! Let's go now!!"

She grabbed his hand to pull a stop from going out. "Come to think of it, where's Hotaru?"

"Oh, Hotaru!" Ruka forgot to say, "Hotaru will be busy tonight because she was supposed to finish her drafting."

Mikan said, "Gee, Ruka. You knew her situation well more than I do…"

He blushed and said, "No, she just called me an hour ago…"

"Let's go!" Mikan twirled her hair while walking towards the door first. Ruka and Natsume only followed behind her back. They do not want to take the car, because other students might suspect their secret about living together in a house, so they preferred walking. Once they reached Shouda's residence, she gaped in surprise. It was bigger than her house in Nagoya and the decorations were too much from outside. She talked to the guard man. "Excuse, we're Sumire's friends." Mikan handed the invitation cards with their name on it.

He took it and nodded. The gate opened afterwards, Mikan and her friends entered it. They were lead by a butler, to the main hall. Everybody was there, the decorations were grand. The big chandelier brightened up the place and a band of musicians were playing their songs. Girls were squealing over Ruka and Natsume, but when Natsume 'delivered' his glares, they immediately quietened. Mikan spotted Otonashi talking to her senior.

"Ruka…" Natsume said, "I'll be outside."

"B-but, Mikan--"

"Just tell her…" He lowered his head and went outside of the mansion nearby the swimming pool.

Mikan tried to find Natsume in the crowd, but failed. She snug Ruka's top. "Hey, where's Natsume??"

"Ah? Natsume?" Ruka turned to Mikan while getting a juice on the table. "He said he's going outside. I told you that he's not into these party things…"

"B-but, your party was okay for him??"

"Ahaha, I'm his best friend, Mikan. Of course he would attend it…"

She scratched her head and mumbled, "Jeez! He's so unsocial! I'm going to find him, all right?"

He smiled at moved to the right to let her pass. "Now I knew what Natsume likes so much about her…"

Mikan checked at the back garden first, and then browsed at the swimming pool. She spotted him sitting down on a bench, thinking something important. She tried to surprised him by grabbing both of his shoulders at once, but he expressionlessly turned his head to the right. "I heard you coming… That was a lame attempt…"

"Don't act so cool all the time, Natsume! It's really boring!!" Mikan complained as she took a seat beside him. "Anyway… why didn't you go inside and have some fun??"

"You think I'll be having fun in a place like this?" He questioned and closed his eyes. "Especially Shouda's residence??"

"Why not? She seems nice…"

He smirked, "You'll see…"

"You're saying as if she's that bad, Natsume! How mean!" Mikan stated.

"Hey, what are you two doing here alone?!" Someone called from their back. Mikan turned to see a teenager about 19 years old, with the same hairstyle as Sumire.

"Hey, look at that Natsume! Another weird hairstyle just like Sumire!" Mikan pointed out. Natsume simpered. "What? Did I say something wrong?"

The teenager twitched his eyes when he heard Mikan's remarks about his hair. "Do you even know who am I, kouhai?!"

Mikan shook her head, in ignorance. "Maybe you're her brother?" For once, she's smart.

He grinned, "Well, of course! I'm Ani Shouda, Sumire's elder brother. The great, magnificent--"

"Shut your yapping…" Natsume interrupted his speech, while standing up.

Ani pointed at him while gaping, "Y-you brat! What did you just called me?! Twerp!"

Mikan bowed and followed Natsume towards a garden. "See you, Mr. Seaweed hair!"

"T-those two rascals…." Ani was getting annoyed with his juniors. His little sister tapped his shoulders. "What, Sumire?"

"You were talking to yourself…" Sumire furrowed her brow. "Hey, nii-chan. It's my birthday party, don't spoil it…"

"I was not talking to myself, little sister." Ani complained, "It was your stupid crush Natsume Hyuuga with this girl. They pissed me off!"

Sumire's eyes shone brightly like the stars. "D-did you say, Natsume Hyuuga?!"

"That kind of a brat is your liking?" Ani said. "He's so rude to a senior!!"

"Oh, brother! He's always like that… It makes me to worship him more and more!!" Sumire's hopes got high but, "Who's that girl you saw with Natsume?!!"

Ani thought for a while. "Em, a brunette… wears pink skirt… I don't know her… And she called me Mr. Seaweed hair!!!"

"…" Sumire silenced as she witnessed her brother's outrage with a sweat drop.

X

Mikan came back to the hall with Natsume. Ruka noticed that they were arguing about something, so he approached them and asked, "What happened?"

Mikan pointed to her shoes. It was muddy and dirty. "Natsume pushed me in a puddle!! Luckily I didn't fall on it!"

"I told you, I was not pushing you." He said coolly. "There was a bug behind, so I smacked it."

"Well, you could've just swift it away!!" Mikan retorted.

Ruka sweat dropped. "Err… Mikan? You could wash it off back at home right?"

Mikan sobbed. "I bought these with my own money… Jeez, it's your entire fault!!"

Natsume shrugged, "If you wouldn't have attended this party, it wouldn't get dirty…"

"Ah!!" Sumire appeared beside Natsume. "How kind of you to come here!! Natsume and Ruka!!"

He frowned in exasperation. "Ruka, come…" He walked to a corner, followed by Ruka.

Sumire was still excited because they have rejected her invitation for the past 4 years. "Oh, fancy seeing you here, Mikan." Suddenly she remembered her brother saying that the girl who hanged out with Natsume was a brunette with a pink miniskirt. She eyed her outfit and tried to see whether her classmates had the same feature. But there was not any.

"Hi, Sumire!" Mikan smiled. "Here, it's your birthday present!" She handed over the present to her. "I hope you'll like it!"

"I'm not so sure about that… I have a lot of money! My parents could buy everything I want. Maybe this present of yours aren't that expensive, right?" Sumire showed off.

Mikan sweat dropped. "Err, maybe. It's a hand-made…"

"Hohoho…" Sumire laughed while turning her back from Mikan, because she knew that Mikan was the one hanging out with Natsume in the swimming pool area. "Like I thought… Ah, but I'll keep it anyway… An ordinary girl like you would cry if I don't accept." She walked from her.

A vein popped on Mikan's head. She returned to her table and stared at her hands on her lap. "She's so mean… She doesn't need to say that to me! What a nerve…"

Otonashi took a seat next to the troubled girl. "Hey, what's wrong? Aren't you having a good time?"

Mikan doubtfully nodded. "Otona-chan… No, I'm just resting…"

She nudges Mikan, referring to Natsume and Ruka who were talking about something. "I didn't know they actually attended the party. I'm sure Sumire might be overwhelmed about this…"

Mikan agreed and took a sip from her cup. The lights suddenly concentrated on the main stage. Sumire was standing there with a humongous cake, enough for everybody in the house. Everybody gathered around her and sung the birthday song. After getting a slice of the cake, she mumbled about how Sumire was acting so cold towards her.

Ruka came up to her with Natsume behind him. "Hey, Mikan. You looked angry…"

"Well, yeah! She was cold towards me all of a sudden. Did I do something wrong?!" Mikan asked.

"Maybe you ate too much…" Natsume pointed out to her table which is full of empty plates. "You have quite an appetite."

"Hey, it was not only my plate! Otonashi and her friends sat there too…" She defended herself. "I want to go home…" She lowered her head. "I'm tired…"

"Liar." Natsume snapped. "You're lying…"

Ruka sweat dropped. "Natsume, I think she feels dizzy. The music's pretty loud--" His arm was grabbed by Sumire's grasp. "Shouda…"

"Hey! Sorry I didn't notice you guys! As the President of Natsume-Ruka fan club, I apologise--"

Natsume shuts his eyes and cuts in, "Don't spoil my mood today, Shouda. You and your brother are just the same…"

Mikan talked to Sumire, who was shocked to hear those words from Natsume. "Sumire, I'll have to leave. I need to do some laundry back at home." She smiled wryly.

"Oh, okay. I don't mind if you've already left anyway… Of course, a poor girl like you does laundry, it's obvious." Those words struck Mikan's feelings a lot. "You may leave now… as long as Natsume and Ruka won't."

Natsume felt that Mikan was hurt because of Sumire, so he took Ruka's arm off from her. "Ruka, we'll go back too."

"N-no, wait!! There are a lot of things to show you! And my friends--"

"We're not interested. And I came here because a friend of mine wanted to. If not, I would not even think of coming here." Natsume rejoined.

Mikan already left the house, Natsume and Ruka tried to follow her. Sumire just stood there, silenced. Her friends asked what's wrong with her but she paid no heed to them. "No wonder I liked them so much…" Her hopes are getting higher, what a thick faced girl…

Mikan, on the other hand, was surprised to be treated as bad as this. Back in Nagoya, everybody was friendly and there were not any bad people. Her experience in Tokyo really made her realise that there are such people like Sumire Shouda. Ruka walked beside her, with Natsume. The blonde patted her shoulder, she turned to her left. "Oh… hey…"

"What did she do towards you?" Ruka asked worriedly. "You changed your mood way too quickly."

Mikan shook her head. "No, I just feel like going back home. Look, my shoes are dirty. It'll be much better if I wash it as soon as possible."

Ruka smiled, "Oh, all right then." Natsume only watched.

Back at home, the butler came up to Natsume and said, "Young Master, there is a guest waiting. His name is Yuu Tobita."

Natsume frowned. _What is it this time?_ "Oh, okay. Dismissed." The butler bowed and excused himself. "Hey, Ruka. Mikan. Follow me to the meeting room." They walked at the right wing of the mansion and went inside the room after a knock. It was Yuu Tobita with an unknown guest. "What do you want?"

Yuu stood up, "Sorry for interrupting you guys at this late hour, but, I have someone to introduce to you all." The dark marine haired teenager about 18 years old got to his feet and bowed. "This is Sekuhara Imai. He came from Nakano." (a/n: I'm not sure whether this is his name, so excuse me for that!)

Ruka blinked and said, "Imai? Isn't that the same surname as Hotaru?"

Sekuhara smirked, "Hm, so you knew my little sister?" Ruka and Mikan gaped at him longingly while pointing at him. "Yes, I'm her elder brother." Natsume does not seem surprised at all, because he owned a striking resemblance to Hotaru. By all means, the eyes are the same.

"H-Hotaru had a brother?!" Mikan shouted out loud, "S-she didn't tell me that she has one!!"

Yuu sweat dropped. "Calm down… He is here to help Hotaru on this mission. Imai-san is really smart when it comes to these things."

Natsume looked uninterested. "So?"

"He'll be staying here as well. I am informed that Hotaru would move in here, right?" Yuu said.

"Really!?" Mikan said. "That'll be great! The more the merrier!"

Natsume shrugged and exited the room. Ruka followed him after excusing himself but Mikan stayed there. Yuu sweat dropped, "Natsume doesn't like guests, huh?"

She said, "Nah, maybe he's tired or something like that…" She turned her head to Sekuhara. "So, I think you could choose any of the rooms here. I'll have to sleep early because there's school tomorrow." Yuu nodded and allowed her to leave.

"Interesting place…" Sekuhara's eyes glinted. He asked the butlers to carry his bags in any room that is available. After they left, he turned to Yuu and said, "Tell Reiko-san everything will be all right."

"Yeah, I'll do that." Yuu agreed.

X

The next day at Shibuya High, Mikan, Otonashi and Hotaru were doted to do clean the whole class. Otonashi complained, "Why is it only the three of us every Friday??"

Mikan was wiping the windows. "I have no idea. I was confused myself. Isn't this supposed to be a 6 people work?"

"Such a pain… Who boycotted the whole class?!" Otonashi lowered her voice.

"Sumire." Hotaru said numbly. Mikan and Otonashi turned their heads to her direction. Hotaru was sweeping the floor. "Maybe it's her because I sensed that she was a bit cold towards Mikan…"

Mikan stared at Hotaru and lowered her head. "What did I do wrong?"

"There's only one explanation." Otonashi pointed out. "Natsume or Ruka."

"What about them?" Mikan asked.

Hotaru felt like hitting Mikan's head. And she did, with the broomstick. "Idiot, can't you realise that you're too close with the two of the most famous guys in the high school?"

The grey haired girl looked at Mikan and then to Hotaru, "It may sound a little bit weird but…" She placed both her hands on her hips. "Mikan is awfully close to Natsume and Hotaru has been good friends with Ruka. Well, scratch about the blackmailing situations, but the whole picture seems to put in that way."

Hotaru leered at Otonashi, "I'm not even close with him… Besides, I'm only getting my money for my project…"

Mikan blushed, "Yeah, I'm not even close to Natsume. Can't you see what he'd done towards me??"

Otonashi sweat dropped. _But it seemed that way…_

X


	14. The Plans

**Chapter 13: ****The Plans.**

Sumire's hatred towards Mikan was getting obvious. What Otonashi said few days ago was true. And there was news spreading about Mikan's true character was a flirter, and everything related to that. Several students started to think badly about her. No matter how many times Hotaru said not to worry, the condition gets worse. So, one day, Mikan took the strength to face Sumire.

"Hey, Sumire!" Mikan said angrily. The permy paused from talking with her friends and turned her head. "What's with you, spreading the news like that!?"

"Oh? What's the proof that the news came from my mouth?" Sumire asked.

"It came from your fan club members…" Mikan said dully. Sumire winced and eyed her friends. "So, it's true then."

Sumire stood up, "Well, you were flirting with Natsume all the time. He doesn't even talk to me! But… you! He actually did care!"

Mikan was confused. _50 he was nice, but another 50 he acts so mean… _

Natsume moved his attention towards the noise, after pausing from reading his manga. "What's that idiot doing?!"

"The idiot you said," Hotaru answered, not looking back. "She wants to stop the rumours from spreading…"

Ruka sweat dropped. "I wonder how she is going to defend herself from being accused as a major flirter…"

Natsume furrowed his brows and resumed his manga reading. "Whatever she's going to do, I think she'll be all right."

Hotaru and Ruka simultaneously stared at him, and then to each other. "He did say that, didn't he?" Ruka asked. Hotaru nodded.

Mikan said, "Why would I flirt with Natsume or Ruka? I already have a boyfriend…" Sumire and her gangs flinched. "His name is Sono Kaname, you could ask him if you want prove…"

Sumire's eyes widened, Natsume's eyes twitched and Hotaru only stared at Mikan. The seaweed hair girl gaped, "K-Kaname?! T-that bishounen, Kaname Sono?!"

Mikan backed from Sumire. She nodded and smiled weirdly. "Err… y-you knew him…?"

"Heck yes!!!" Sumire howled. "He's the hottest senior ever, even though he's a new guy!! He's from that private high school near Shinjuku, right?!!" Mikan was forced to nod. "H-he's your boyfriend!?"

Natsume eyed on Mikan' blushing face. _What an idiot… You still consider him as your man, even though… Jeez, whatever!_

Mikan gave a slight nod. Sumire wailed louder, and just in time, Misaki-sensei entered the class. "Just what on earth are you wailing about, Shouda?! I could hear you from the office!"

Sumire faced Misaki-sensei. "M-Mikan, s-she!! She had Kaname-senpai!!"

Misaki-sensei sweat dropped. "Now, now. Resume to your place…"

Mikan and Sumire returned to their desks and sat down quietly. Hotaru gave a grin to Mikan, telling her that it was a good move to prevent Sumire from harassing her life. Natsume felt angered with Mikan and Ruka could sense that he is jealous.

X

Otonashi walked side by side with Natsume, Ruka, Mikan and Hotaru. "Whoa, I didn't know about Kaname! You should've told me about him!!"

Mikan sweat dropped. "Is he that famous?"

"Of course he is!" Otonashi said loudly. "He was a new guy from Nagoya. The first time he came into the class, every girls in the whole school has a crush on him! Moreover, he's still single at that time!"

Natsume only scoffed. "If he's that famous, he might as well become a superstar and leave this place as soon as possible." He teased.

"Hey," Otonashi said shockingly. "That's not a nice thing to say…"

"Hotaru…" A guy called from behind. Hotaru turned to see that her brother was walking towards her. "Let me help you with the packing. I'll have to get my things from there too." Hotaru silenced and walked together with her brother to the different direction.

Otonashi said, "They're so… cold…" She wrapped her arms around her body. "They seemed to be like statues…"

"Yeah, I guessed you could say that again…" Ruka said. "Ah, Otonashi. Your house's that way, isn't it?" He said while pointing to a left junction.

She nodded. "Yeah, thanks for reminding me. See you guys tomorrow!" Otonashi ran towards the road and left.

"Now that I think of it…" Mikan said, as she thought deeply about Kaname's face. "Kaname really reminded me of my dad. Their faces are alike to each other, ne?"

Ruka gave a long thought. "Err, yeah. The blonde does match…"

"That's why, every time I talked to him…" She walked on with both of them. "I could feel the warmth, just like my dad's. It's like; he's my brother or something. Pretty weird, right?"

"Anything's weird when it comes out from your mouth." Natsume snapped.

Mikan pouted and marched towards the garden. "Imai-senpai called me earlier. He said I need to quit my part-time job…"

Ruka said, "Is it because of your dad's situation?" She nodded. "Em, I think you should quit, even though it's fun for you."

"Yeah, I don't want to make dad worried about me…" She lowered her voice. "I'll give a call to the manager…" Mikan walked inside the mansion and picked up her cell phone.

Ruka stared as she called the manager for a resignation. "She seemed pretty sad…"

"Hn…" Natsume went upstairs to take a bath.

After talking for about 10 minutes on the phone, she hung up and walked towards Ruka. "I've resigned…"

"What took you so long?" Ruka asked.

"She was asking why suddenly I resigned. So, I said, I need to concentrate on my studies…"

He patted on her head, "After these problems are over, you could get the job back. I'm sure of it."

She vehemently nodded and said, "Say, Ruka? Do you want to have lunch here? I'll cook."

He thought for a while. "Em, sure. I kind of missed your miso."

She smiled and went into the kitchen. Moments later, he heard a door opening from the main door. It was Hotaru and his brother with butlers carrying their bags. "Hotaru, those things are…" He said pointing to a trolley with a lot of electronic items.

"My inventions…" She replied solemnly. "Onii-chan, mind having the room next to mine? It'll be much better to organise the plans…"

Subaru only nodded and walked upstairs with the butlers, leaving Hotaru and Ruka. He said, while walking towards the dining room. "What plans?"

"Oh, didn't I tell you guys?" She said without emotions. "My brother and I will create a time-table for Mikan, enabling her to be safe 24/7."

Ruka sweat dropped a lot. "T-time table?! I don't think Mikan would follow your time table…"

"Why not?" She said, holding up a book.

He was scared that she might hit him. "N-no, y-you're right!"

"Hm…" Hotaru smiled. Later, Natsume came down from the stairs with Sekuhara. "Come here for a while, you two."

Natsume moved his eyes to where the voice came from. "Imai…" After all of them gathered around the table, Mikan peeked from the kitchen. "Oi, cook faster! Don't eavesdrop." He turned his head to the spot where she was peeping.

Mikan was startled and then stuck her tongue at him. "Jeez, I'm just checking how many people want lunch!" She counted one by one. "All right! 4 people!" She went back in the kitchen.

"My sister and I have decided to make a time-table for her." Sekuhara said. "Hotaru, show them."

She took out a paper from her file and placed it on the table for everyone to see. "We can only guard her in the house. When she's outside, the special bodyguards will help out. Since Natsume and I were doted to become her protector, I've written certain things…"

Natsume looked through the paper and winced. "Playing games with Mikan—Natsume Hyuuga's job?! What the… heck… Cooking with her too?!" He squinted and widened his eyes, "Go to any festival celebrations with Mikan and several bodyguards? Imai, what on earth are you trying to pull at?!"

Hotaru stared at him, "Nothing. I have far worse things, okay? I'll be guarding her, even when she's sleeping!"

"These things are wasting my time." Natsume snapped. "I never agreed on becoming her guard, anyway." He placed both his hands behind his head and shuts his eyes.

Ruka sweat dropped. "Well, Hotaru? Don't you think this job is heavy for him?"

Hotaru moved her eyes on Ruka, without moving her face. "It's either he accepts it or she'll be dead in no time. I have created weapon proof clothes, so nobody will get harmed at all."

Subaru folded his arms, "Yeah, it looked like normal clothes, but it's really weapon proof. I'm here as a family doctor. I've graduated last year and I'll be in charge of healing people."

Natsume opened his eyes. "Fine, whatever. I'll accept this, but you need her agreement."

Subaru replied, "Hotaru's in charge of that. Don't worry." Mikan arrived with a tray of food and placed in on the table. "Um, thanks…"

"No problem!" Mikan smiled. "Help yourselves." Hotaru showed her the paper and explained the whole thing. "W-what?! I… I don't need those things!"

Hotaru smacked her head. "Idiot, just follow the whole plan. Or else, you might die. All right?"

"B-but, there's a weapon armour! I could use it!" She rejected the offer.

"Don't be stupid." Subaru said. "You are unaware of your surroundings. With that, you can't protect yourself well."

"I might be busy most of the time with my brother, so Natsume is in charge." Hotaru said as she ate sashimi.

Mikan stunned, she turned to look at Natsume who was eating the food emotionlessly. "N-no way!!"

X

Mikan was in her room, thinking what happened 5 hours ago. She could not accept having to hang out with Natsume most of the time, because she was terrified that something that she does not wish to happen, will come true. She heard the door knock and went for it. It was Natsume and Hotaru.

"H-hey… What's up?" Mikan asked terrifyingly when she received an unusual glare from Natsume. Hotaru pushed him inside the room. "Hotaru!!"

"Study time…" Hotaru murmured. "Get at least 60 in all subjects, except physical exercise, since that's the only subject you excelled. Natsume'll help you. I'm busy." She took the door knob and slammed it shut.

Mikan gaped at the door, trying to digest what Hotaru has just said to her. Then, she turned to her back, seeing Natsume sitting on a chair near her desk. "W-what's going on here?!"

"Studying, you idiot!" Natsume snapped. "Your idiotic friend blackmailed me. Get on with it; take out your Additional Mathematics book 2." He demanded while slamming the table with his palm.

"I-I don't need any tuition! I'm fine on my—" She paused when he held up her paper results for the make-up exam. "W-where did you—"

"Hotaru got it for me. I asked her to. I wanted to see how bad you did, and, by the looks of it…" He said while opening the book, checking the scores. "This is the worst results I've ever seen for a make-up examination."

She tried to retrieve it from him, but he quickly hid it inside his jacket. "G-give me that!!"

Natsume grabbed her hand and pulled her down to sit next to him. He felt her hands are trembling. "Hey, are you nervous or something?"

"No, I'm not!" She blushed. "It's cold, that's why!" She took out her math book from the bag and said, "Here, what do you want me to do with this?"

He flipped open the pages and looked through. Natsume pointed to the upper left of the page towards the bottom. "I'll show you on how to solve these long questions. Then you repeat back what I've thought you."

"Okay…" Mikan pouted. She was thinking of calling her friends but, with Natsume here, it's impossible.

X


	15. Author's Desperado Note 2!

**Author's note:**

Oh my god… I'm so sorry I haven't updated…. The thing is… this stupid college is making me crazy with all the works piling up! Taking up either About the story Royalty Demands and Under One Roof, don't worry… I will update it soon… I hope… My college will end by April… so I have a plenty of time to type and update it. Of course, I would try to update it sooner… '''

I'm so tensed right now… Even though author's note is not supposed to be published here, but I'm in desperate measures to tell you guys. Sorry! As for Royalty Demands, I have written the next chapter already, but I'm waiting for a good time to publish it, since I didn't bring my pendrive today… Idiota… Thanks for all your reviews, I really appreciate it, truly. Thanks for reading this note.


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